


a softer world

by rudeandginger



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, How Do I Tag, Kara Danvers Tells Lena Luthor About Being Supergirl, so much I could say here, they are so soft, wouldn't it be nicer this way
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-09-30
Packaged: 2021-02-26 11:55:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 81,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22702696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rudeandginger/pseuds/rudeandginger
Summary: What if Kara had told Lena about her secret identity after Medusa? What if they fell in love onscreen? Imagine an Earth-38 without Lames. With a lot less Mon-Hell angst (but they do still date). More fun Superfriends action, less contrived drama. Wouldn't it be nicer this way?Season 2: CompleteSeason 3: Now Showing
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Comments: 109
Kudos: 575
Collections: wouldn't it be nicer this way





	1. supergirl lives

**Author's Note:**

> Beginning from the end of S2 E9 "Supergirl Lives".
> 
> S3 E1 begins with Chapter 15.

"Have a great day, Chief." Kara smiled the smile of the righteous as she left Snapper's office. She was done for the day at Catco, and there was only one thing left to do. She whistled cheerfully as she stepped into the elevator.

Lena was, as per usual, in her office, stressing over the latest set of obstacles the L Corp board had thrown in her path.

"Miss Luthor?" Jess buzzed in. "Miss Danvers."

Lena pressed the button. "Thank you, Jess."

Kara walked in a second later, beaming like the sun.

Lena put down her tablet and smiled back. "Well, Miss Danvers, you look like something amazing happened today."

"Something did," Kara replied, happiness in her voice. "A lot of people were saved today from a nasty place called Slaver's Moon. I was working on the story of one of the missing people, and turns out she'd been taken there."

Lena nodded. "I did hear the breaking news. Supergirl saved them, didn't she?"

Kara nodded, sitting down across from Lena in the appropriate chair. "And that's why I'm here."

Lena frowned, suspicious. "I can assure you neither L Corp nor I have--"

"Whoa, Lena!" Kara put her hands up in a placating gesture. "Not at all where I was going. Nothing to do with you or L Corp. Promise."

Lena continued to frown. "Then what is it?"

Kara's expression softened. "Supergirl. It's about Supergirl. Hear me out?"

Lena leaned back in her chair and folded her arms defensively. She'd thought Kara was her friend, and Supergirl her ally since the Medusa virus. But her last name taught her to fear treachery at every turn. -What will you throw at me, Kara?-

Kara pushed her glasses back up her nose nervously. "I...okay. As I'm sure you understand, Supergirl's identity is a closely kept secret. Because if people knew who she was, she'd never get a break. But, her friends...they know who she is when she's not Supergirl."

"You being included in that," Lena replied neutrally.

"That's the thing. I'm not Supergirl's friend."

Lena arched an eyebrow. "No?"

"No." Kara pulled her glasses off slowly.

Lena's eyes grew huge as Kara unbuttoned her shirt at the collar, revealing a familiar blue skintight top and the House of El crest.

"But you, Lena. You are Supergirl's friend. And it's time you knew who she really is." Kara bit her lip.

Lena just stared.

Kara's chest heaved with a few nervous gulps of air. "Lena? Say...say something? Please?"

Lena's look slowly morphed into incredulousity. "I'm a -Luthor-, Kara. Supergirl. -Why-?"

"Because you've shown that you're my friend," Kara argued, buttoning up her shirt. "The Medusa virus proved that. You were willing to take the fall and have everyone believe you're bad just so you could actually save the world. Don't you know how amazing that is? And I know, I know we haven't known each other that long. But, Lena, I feel connected to you now. We're friends, and I want to stay friends with you for a very long time."

Lena's eyes pricked with tears. "...friends?"

Kara nodded rapidly. "Friends. Real friends. Please?"

Lena closed her eyes, overcome. Lex was cackling in her head. "Lena, baby sis! Don't you understand what this means? You could finish what I started!"

"Lena?" Kara got up, concerned. "Lena, if it's too much, we can forget this ever happened. I promise we can."

Lena opened her eyes. "Don't leave me," she begged, mouth moving faster than her brain.

Kara gasped. "No, no, Lena. I won't leave you. Don't leave -me-?"

Lena was on her feet. "No, no...I won't."

They fell into each other's arms, Lena finally letting out a sob which promptly turned into an emotional waterfall.

Kara held on as tight as she dared, swaying gently from side to side as Lena cried herself out.

"I'm sorry," Lena whispered as soon as she could manage to speak. "I'm sorry I'm so weak."

"Look at me, Lena?"

Lena raised her head to see tears streaming down Kara's face.

"It's not weak to cry," Kara whispered. "It's not weak to have emotions. I promise."

Lena laid her head back down on Kara's shoulder. She was currently breaking every single one of the rules that had been beaten into her as a child. Luthors did not cry, Luthors did not touch for the sake of it, they manipulated the emotions of others, period. Touch was a weapon, not a balm. But Kara's arms were warm, so warm and comforting, and -this- Super trusted -this- Luthor with potentially fatal knowledge.

"Plus, this is special for me. You're the first person who knows that I've actually gotten to tell solely because I wanted to," Kara murmured. "Everyone else has either figured it out or had to be told due to an emergency. Or someone else told them. But you, Lena? You're the first one I've actually come out as Supergirl to." It wasn't -quite- the truth, but this was the first time it had ever meant so much, Kara thought. And it wasn't as if anyone would call her on it.

Lena smiled. "I love that."

"Me too."

They held on to each other for another little while, Kara still swaying to the beat of Lena's heart. She was rapidly learning what it sounded like, and was close to memorizing it so she could always find it again. Every supercharged cell in her body was telling her that the woman in her arms was -important-, and that she had to be kept.

"So, do I call you Kara or Supergirl or something else?" Lena straightened back up again and loosened her grip on Kara.

Kara relaxed her hold as well, but let her hands rest on Lena's shoulders. "Kara. It's my real name. But not while I'm in the suit."

Lena shook her head. "Of course not. Security first. But Kara's your real name? Your real Kryptonian name?"

Kara nodded. "My Earth name is Kara Danvers, but my Kryptonian name is Kara Zor-El."

Lena frowned slightly. "It's not just El, like your cousin?" Her frown deepened. -Kara's cousin is Superman. Clark Kent. Superman was in my office! Lex would be livid.-

Kara shook her head. "Let's go sit down and I'll tell you anything you want to know."

Lena nodded and stepped back towards her phone. She pressed the intercom button. "Jess, please clear the afternoon. Miss Danvers will be here."

"Will do, Miss Luthor."

Together, Kara and Lena walked over to her couch, and sat down. The next three hours would see Kara telling Lena, among many other things, about the true origins of Medusa, the exact way her body metabolized yellow sun into energy, and how to pronounce a few basic Kryptonian phrases.

"But you still don't know how kryptonite affects you?" Lena asked, brows furrowed in thought. "Just that it does?"

Kara nodded. "If we knew, maybe we'd be better at developing defenses for it over at the DEO."

Lena nodded. "You have no idea how badly I want to push you into one of my labs and see what non-invasive testing I can perform to get the info I need to start r&d on technology for you. L Corp has stockpiles of all kinds of things." She frowned again. "I wish I had Lex's research. He spent so much time trying to stop Superman and developing weapons to hurt him that there -must- be something in all of it that could be subverted or modified to be -helpful- to you."

Kara took Lena's hand. "You're amazing. Has anyone told you that lately?"

One corner of Lena's mouth turned up ruefully. "I believe I told you that my mother and I have never seen eye to eye. And now I've had a glimpse of what she's been up to. I feel sure I'll have to play along with certain schemes of hers in order to bring her and CADMUS down."

"Well, -I- will know where your loyalties really lie," Kara replied, nodding. "I kept telling everyone that this time as well. That I knew you couldn't be willingly aiding your mother in something as heinous as reviving Medusa."

"Did you find out why she kidnapped you and took your blood?"

"To gain access to the Fortress of Solitude to steal Medusa itself."

"Fortress of Solitude?"

Kara launched off into the specs of the Fortress and what it did for herself and Kal.

Lena's eyes were more than a bit glazed over by the time Kara finished. "The technology alone..."

"I'd love to show you sometime. You're a Superfriend now, after all."

Lena's eyebrow quirked. "A Superfriend?"

Kara grinned. "Yeah, it's an elite group. We have tee shirts and a handshake. I'll teach it to you, it's not a big deal. It's a whole thing."

Lena laughed. "I'd love that. What do the shirts look like?"

Kara opened her mouth to answer, but Lena's phone chirped.

Lena frowned briefly as she picked up the device and checked it. "Crap. Got to go down to the labs and report on something and also set another batch of preliminary tests in the process."

Kara smirked. "Guess I'll have to let you go do science. You know where to find me when you're done."

Lena smiled. "Maybe not tonight, but yes. I'll find you soon."

\--

Can we talk? A lot of things have just happened in my life and I'm so angry. I need someone who understands.  
Of course. When?  
You free tonight? Can you come over?  
Sure.

"I'm so, so -mad- at James, Lena!" Kara burst forth after her fifth piece of pizza. "He's -human-. He could die so easily!"

"We all could die, Kara." Lena sipped her scotch. She'd brought a bottle and insisted that Kara keep it for future visits, to which the blonde had given her a dazzling smile that honestly made her want to fall over and declare her growing-bigger-by-the-second crush. "Even you could die. And someday, you will. We -all- will. Can you really blame James for wanting to make a difference with his life, do good?"

"But he doesn't want to do it like you do," Kara protested. "You do so much good with your inventions and research, and you don't have to punch a single thug to do it."

Lena smiled softly. "I've metaphorically punched some frail, old white men at board meetings and conferences."

"No one was in any danger of dying, though." Kara wove her fingers together pensively. "I know I won't lose you in a board meeting."

"Kara?" Lena asked, so gently that it made the blonde's eyes well with tears. "Why are you so frightened of death, particularly the death of your loved ones?"

Kara put her head in her hands and choked back a sob. "I watched from my pod window as my planet died. I've watched so many others die. I don't want any more death, it terrifies me to think of life without any of you in it."

Lena scooted close and wrapped her arms around Kara. "We aren't going anywhere. At least, I'm not. I'm right here with you."

Kara leaned into Lena, tucking her head into the crook of her neck. "Promise?"

"I promise. You've got me now, Kara. I'll always be on your side."

Kara shook with her sobs, and Lena just held her close.

"Is that everything?" Lena asked softly once Kara had calmed down.

"No. There's...stuff...at the DEO. Someone may die there as well. Not...not my friend, not really, but my boss's friend. Hard to explain."

"I'm sorry," Lena murmured. "Don't compromise security to tell me. I understand."

Kara's phone beeped. She grumbled and pulled it out. "Ugh, this guy."

Lena arched an eyebrow. "Let me guess. Mike of the Interns."

Kara scoffed. "Yeah. Goofus incarnate."

"What does he want?"

"To come over." Kara rapidly thumbed a reply. "But he can't, because I am having a girls' night in with my dear friend Lena."

Lena broke into a small smile. "Dear?"

Kara looked up. "Is...is that okay?"

Lena blushed and nodded. "Absolutely."

Kara's phone beeped again, and she looked down, frowning. "Um. So he doesn't quite get social cues. And he says he can totally be a girl too."

Lena frowned. "Let me see."

Kara handed her the phone obediently, and Lena typed a response, hitting send before handing it back to Kara.

Lena says she doesn't want anyone else over, and she's had a rough day. I'll talk to you in the morning.

"Rough day?" Kara looked up.

"Very much so. My day at work was long, and my dear friend Kara has suffered a minor breakdown in my arms. I'd call that rough, and I have the right to decline further company. Even if it -is- your house."

Kara smiled. "No one can argue with you." Her phone beeped again.

Lena snarled and snatched it back, reading the text. Then she hit the dial button and held the phone to her ear. "Mike?" she asked after a moment. "Yeah, hi, it's Lena Luthor. Kara and I are trying to watch a movie together. I'm going to put her phone in another room now, and if you even -try- knocking on her door, you won't like the reception that awaits you. -I- do not want you here, and that's enough."

She listened for a moment. "No, you may -not- speak to Kara until tomorrow morning, like she said. No. No, not that either. Good -night-, Mike."

She hit end call and powered the phone off completely. Then she pulled out her own phone and began to tap a message on it.

"What are you doing?" Kara asked, flabbergasted at the show of power and more than a little turned on by it.

"Telling Alex what I just did and why, and that if someone needs Supergirl to just ping me since my phone is still on."

Kara just stared. "Wow, Lena. You're...you're amazing."

Lena gave her a sideways look and shrugged, smiling. "CEO." She tucked her phone back into her purse. "Now. Let's not make a liar of -this- Luthor. Movie?"

Kara grinned. "Yeah."


	2. we can be heroes of the martian chronicles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy V-Day.
> 
> Reminder that I moderate comments because I'm not here for chatting, I'm merely a content provider.
> 
> This is all I have written for the moment. Let us hope I don't get writers block.

Mike confessed feelings for me.  
What kind of feelings?  
Romantic ones. He was part of that alien bar attack, and he was dying just a few days ago. He kissed me when he thought he wasn't going to make it. He was delirious.  
He's an alien, huh? Is his name really Mike?  
No. It's Mon-El.  
El? Is he related to you?!  
No no no! Different planet, but our planets were like sisters? But his people do a lot of stuff my people didn't approve of, so they're actually like enemies. But he gets supercharged by yellow sun too. I've been training him, he wants to be a superhero too.  
Oh. That's a lot.  
I don't know what to DO please help me.  
Well, how do you feel about him?  
Conflicted. I don't think we're a good match.  
Then tell him that.  
But I also think, maybe? Am I missing a chance for a good thing?  
Look, there's no reason you can't say no now and then change your mind later. Men are pretty easy like that. Follow your heart, Kara.

Lena sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose anxiously. Here she was, telling her newest and biggest crush to follow her heart. Over a guy. -So. She's straight. Good to know.-

She spent the rest of the day squishing her burgeoning feelings for her "dear friend" into a little mental box. Then she sat on the lid and duct taped it shut.

\--

Hey, Lena?  
What's up?  
Can you come over?  
Is something wrong?  
I'd say no, but I don't want to lie to you.  
I'll be there as soon as I can.

Kara was watching one of her favourite old movies and eating ice cream when the knock on her door came. She squinted, using her x-ray vision, and saw Lena on the other side. She hopped off the couch and ran to open the door.

"Hey," Lena said shyly.

Kara sighed in relief. "Thank Rao. Get in here."

As soon as the door closed behind them, Kara wrapped Lena up in a tight hug, which she returned with just as much fervour.

"Tell me what's wrong?"

"Let me get you your own pint of ice cream. What would you like? Chocolate, double chocolate, rocky road...?"

Lena smiled. "Rocky road sounds amazing."

Over their respective pints of ice cream (Kara finished hers quickly and Lena kept tipping hers toward Kara to let her have spoonfuls), Kara explained the concept of "Earth birthday" and why she was alone.

"And I don't begrudge Alex time with Maggie. I don't. I really, really don't. But it's hard to not feel snubbed."

Lena reached out and placed her hand on Kara's arm. "Maggie didn't know about Earth birthday. So she didn't mean to take Alex away from you."

Kara closed her eyes, in pain. "I don't know how to do this without Alex, Lena. I've never known what that's like."

"You're not alone," Lena said strongly. "You're -not-. Happy Earth birthday, Kara. I'm so -glad- I'm the one spending it with you."

Another knock on the door, and Kara squinted at it again. "It's...it's Alex?!"

Lena sighed. "I'll go."

Kara whipped her head back around. "No, you -won't-. Please, I want you to stay. Three's an actual party."

Lena smiled gently and nodded as the knock came again.

Kara went to the door and opened it.

"Happy Earth birthday," Alex said, smiling as she proffered the cupcake with a lot candle. "Look, there's a K."

Kara giggled softly, and Lena got up and crossed to the door as well.

"Well, go ahead, blow it out." Alex smiled. "Gently!"

Kara blew the candle out politely.

"Yay," Lena said softly.

"Thank you," Kara said, grinning, as Alex handed her the cupcake.

"You're welcome," Alex replied. "Hey, Lena. Fancy seeing you here."

"Well, Kara asked me to come over. And then she told me about her Earth birthday, so I'm glad I came. And glad you're here."

Kara stepped back to let Alex in and take the cupcake to the kitchen. "Was Maggie mad that you missed the concert?"

"Well, luckily I have a girlfriend that understands when deadly aliens besiege my place of work, that takes precedence." Alex slapped her hand over her mouth as she realized what exactly she'd just revealed. "Crap."

"I know what you really do, Alex," Lena said softly. "Remember? Sent you that text."

Alex's eyes were rounder than an owl's as she remembered that yes, Lena had sent her that text, and she hadn't processed it properly, clearly. "Kara!"

"I told her weeks ago," Kara replied quickly. "I want her in my life, Alex, and the only way I can honestly have a friend is if they know."

Lena nodded. "I'll keep the secret til my grave. My mother knows, so that's complicated. But I'll deny to my dying day that Supergirl is any more than a working acquaintance of mine, or that I have any idea who she actually is."

Alex nodded. "I should make you sign the DEO's NDA, honestly. If only because I just now realized that you -know-, even though you texted me about it."

Kara shook her head. "I freely told her, she didn't find out. So it wouldn't be valid."

Alex sighed. "It was just a thought. I may not know you very well, Lena, but I have to trust my sister's judgment, don't I?"

Lena nodded. "I'm glad that you're doing so. I hope I never give you a reason to do otherwise."

Alex nodded back. "Let's eat this cupcake."

Alex and Lena sat down, and Kara bustled about her kitchen getting forks and a knife.

"So...deadly aliens?" Lena asked after a moment.

Alex and Kara nodded.

"I'm glad everyone is okay. But that last White Martian...oof!" Kara shuddered a bit.

Lena tilted her head. "White Martian?"

"Yeah," Kara answered. "There are two types of Martians, green and white. The Green Martians are smaller than the White Martians and are peaceful. But the White Martians declared war and wiped the Greens out. There are still some Green Martians, just not on Mars."

"Wow," Lena replied softly.

"Remember how I said a while ago that I was scared for my boss's friend who was dying? She's a White Martian who escaped because she didn't want to kill Greens, and the Whites were catching up with her and attacking her psychically."

"And when our boss managed to repel that, they came for her physically," Alex picked up the tale. "All Martians can shapeshift, so two of them infiltrated the DEO, temporarily neutralized me and Winn, and assumed our appearances."

"First of all, boy, did that one Martian do a good impression of you, and second, you got there just in time," Kara said, taking a bite of cupcake.

"Uh, speaking of that White Martian, um... When it was me, did you have a conversation? Because I have these memories. They're like a...almost like a dream, that we talked. But I'm not really sure if that was real."

Kara licked a bit of icing off her fingers and looked down "Do you remember?"

Lena just listened. She wasn't sure if she should really be present for this sisterly conversation, but she wasn't about to call any attention to herself by backing away.

"Yeah. So I'm not crazy?" Alex asked softly.

"Nope. I guess if the White Martian's bond is strong enough, the telepathy goes both ways," Kara replied quietly.

"Yeah. I guess so." Alex leaned over. "Kara. I'm not ever going anywhere. I promise. Just because I'm with Maggie, it doesn't mean that I am not with you...always."

Kara ducked her head. "I know. I...I guess I made those big plans because I wanted the day to be extra special. I felt you slipping away."

Lena placed her hand gently on Kara's back and felt the blonde shift ever so slightly towards her. -I get you now, Kara. Things are starting to make more sense.- 

"I'm not. Ever." Alex nodded firmly. "But is that the only reason you made such big plans?"

Kara ate a bite of cupcake and frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Look, sometimes, you know, in our life, when one part is really confusing, we will pour way more attention than necessary into another. And, you know, you looked a bit overwhelmed when you talked to Mon-El. So, maybe the reason that you made such big plans with me was so that you didn't have to think about how you actually feel about -him-."

"I told him how I feel," Kara protested.

Lena began to rub small circles into the solid steel of Kara's lower back.

"Mhm. And you really believe that?" Alex's tone wasn't demanding, thankfully.

"He's...complicated." Kara looked down at the plate.

"Mhm," Alex replied.

"But it's not just about him, it -is- about me," Kara argued. "Every time I put myself out there, it backfires. I don't want it to happen again, it's too risky."

Lena's heart broke just a little. -What have your exes done to you, Kara?-

"You know, I happened to have taken a rather big romantic risk recently." Alex looked just a little smug, and Kara giggled. "And I gotta say... It pays off."

Lena smiled at Alex. "Honestly, Kara. I understand he's a bit clueless, but your body language is telling us you do actually like him a little."

Kara frowned. "Hey!"

Lena smiled, even though she felt like her heart was being stabbed a million times. She had confirmation now, Kara was straight, she liked Mon-El. So she did what any dear friend would do. "Don't you think you deserve that chance? To see if it might really work?"

Kara sighed. "You're right. You're both right."

"So you'll go for it?" Alex grinned.

Kara nodded and ducked her head. "I want to be happy like you are, sis."

-That would require another woman, darling,- Lena thought bitterly to herself. -But you deserve to be happy.-

Alex loaded her fork up with a bite of cupcake, holding it aloft. "To going for it."

Lena and Kara did the same, and they clinked their forks against each other before taking their respective bites.

\--

He's dating Eve!  
They looked so happy  
I can't take it  
Eve? Who's Eve?  
She was hired to be Miss Grant's assistant when I took the reporter job. Now she's James's assistant.  
Oh, darling. I'm so sorry.  
💔💔💔💔  
Why does it hurt so much?  
Because you do actually like him. And you probably need to tell him that.  
But he's already moved on  
What's the point  
The point is that your soul will lighten when you tell him the truth.

Lena ground her teeth. God, wasn't she the worst hypocrite? Giving Kara the advice she wished she could take herself? But, no. Kara was into Mon-El, and a fellow alien with similar powers was the superior choice for her.

You're right. I'll tell him. I don't know when, though.  
When you see him next. Alone. No Eve.  
You're right. You're always right.  
Not always. Just a lot of the time. That's why they pay me the big bucks.  
Have I told you lately what a wonderful friend you are, Lena?  
Not in a day or two, but thank you for the reminder.  
I'm so happy you're in my life. Honestly!  
I'm happy that you're in MY life, Kara dear.

That much, Lena meant with all her heart. The stars had been kind to her the day Kara and Clark had walked into her office asking for an interview.

-Now, if only I can keep her. For the first time in my entire life, maybe I can finally keep a friend for good.- Lena sighed at her phone. -Maybe.-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, I went there with the ice cream :P


	3. luthors

Hey? Just checking on you.  
Still here.  
You are so strong. I can only imagine how hard testifying against your mother could be.  
It's hard, but also freeing. I get to tell everyone what she did, what she has done. What she'd still be capable of is, sadly, not admissible in court.  
It must be hard doing it alone. Do you want me to come with you tomorrow?  
I think of all the work I'm not getting done as I sit there and stare through her. I couldn't bear for you to lose time and money too.  
I could get assigned to the trial and then I'd have to come!  
And someone would rat on you for even looking at me sympathetically.  
I'd want to sit next to you once you stepped off the stand so I guess you have a point 😑  
I'm sorry. I'm just on edge.  
Did you talk to him?  
No. I asked how she was and he said GREAT. Everything between them is GREAT.  
Kara 😔  
That's the first time I've ever seen you use an emoji! I'm rubbing off on you 😝  
Don't change the subject. I'm sorry about Mon-El. You deserve better anyway.  
Wanna come over and we can hang out? Just for a little bit  
I have so much work to catch up on.  
Please? 😢 I think we'd both feel better.

There was a long, long silence as Lena battled years of brutal conditioning, biting her lip and staring hard at her phone screen. Kara held her breath. -Please, Lena. Come be with me. Please.-

Okay. Should I bring anything?  
Your readiness for the biggest hug. That's all!

The timid knock came about twenty minutes later, and Kara bounded over to open the door and sweep Lena into the promised hug.

"Thank you for coming," Kara whispered into Lena's ear. "I needed you, specifically, tonight."

"Alex not available?" Quick to sense any minute change in Kara's hold, Lena backed away enough to look at her friend.

"And what would she know about the spurned in love, anyway?" Kara gave a dramatic shrug. "She introduced her girlfriend to the boys tonight. They all thought she'd found a guy, so when she walked up with Maggie, their brains rebooted simultaneously. It was great."

"Were they not welcoming?" Lena followed Kara to the couch and sat down with her.

"Oh, no, of course they were welcoming. It was just so funny to watch them all boot out of heterosexual mode. Except Mon-El. On Daxam, everyone was what people here call pansexual, so he didn't even blink. I think he even said "the more the merrier."

Kara made a disgusted face, and Lena laughed. "Not that I'm judging anyone who does polyamory, but the way he -said- that, the more the merrier? I think I cringed myself completely out of the bar!"

"Ah, that's why you're home early."

"That, and I wanted to get you some fried sugary goodness for doing a hard job today." Kara held up the white paper bag. "You do eat doughnuts, right?"

Lena smiled ruefully. "Well, I -am- human." She took the bag. "Thank you, Kara."

"The TV was on in the bar and they were talking about you. I just wanted to see you, let you know I'm thinking about you."

Lena ducked her head, blushing, as she opened the bag and pulled a doughnut out. "Everyone in National City has an opinion about me. Heroine, ungrateful daughter, bitch..."

"Hero," Kara said, firmly. "You're a hero. You saved alienkind on this planet."

"And they've all called for a quote. Not you though, Snapper Carr hasn't told you to shake me down?"

Kara almost sent her glasses flying, she shook her head so vigorously. She pulled them off and set them on the end table. -I don't have to hide from Lena.- "No! If he does, for any reason, I will absolutely tell you before I say anything else. But we're friends right now, that's all."

Lena nodded, tearing off a small piece of doughnut and putting it in her mouth.

"So, was it awful?" Kara asked gently.

"It actually felt good to testify. I got to say my piece and finally distance myself from the Luthor name. And then I came back here to twelve calls from her lawyers." Lena sighed.

Kara sighed and shook her head in sympathy.

"Yeah, she wants to see me," Lena continued.

"What do you think she wants?" Kara frowned.

"Probably to tell me that my outfit in court was horrible and that I need a makeover." Lena's lovely features twisted into a scowl. "I don't know and I don't care. I just thought I was done with her, you know? I'd finally shut the door on being a Luthor. And then there she was, back on my phone sheet."

Kara stared down at her pink-frosted doughnut. "Twelve times," she exhaled softly.

Lena looked over at Kara. "You don't think I should feel guilty for not wanting to go see that monster, right?"

Kara swallowed. She remembered that she always needed to find the best in everyone. And with the relationship between Lillian and Lena crumbling, she'd never forgive herself if she didn't push for a reunion. "Well, do you think you would find peace of mind by visiting her and telling her how you really feel?"

Lena shook her head. "Even if I did, it wouldn't make a difference. You know... She's been the same way since the day I met her."

Lena sighed. "Just like the way she is now."

Kara knew her face was a mask of emotion and didn't bother to hide it. "I've spent most of my life wishing I could talk to people that are no longer here. She's still here. And she's still your mom."

Lena sighed and put the barely touched doughnut down. "I don't want to talk about her anymore."

Kara nodded. "Okay." She handed the remote over. "Your day's sucked worse. You get to pick the movie."

Lena gave a wan smile and began flipping through the Netflix offerings.

By the end of the night, Lena was resting against Kara, drowsing with her head on her super friend's strong, warm shoulder.

"Hey," Kara whispered, taking a chance and gently stroking Lena's cheek with the backs of her fingers. "Hey, Lena. Sleepyhead. Do you want to stay over or head home?"

"Should go," Lena murmured. "Troubled you enough."

"It's no trouble for a friend like you." Kara stroked Lena's cheek again and fought what she felt was an irrational desire to follow that caress with a kiss. "Couch? Bed with me? Or you take the bed and I got the couch?"

Lena blinked forcefully and shook her head, sitting up. "No, no. Should head home." She tapped on her device, clearly texting. "Driver's two minutes away."

"Feel a little better, at least?" Kara asked softly.

"A doughnut always helps," Lena replied quickly.

"Then text me any time you want one." Kara smiled. "I went to Metropolis for these."

Lena frowned, then realized what that meant, and laughed. "You're abusing your superness to get me dessert?"

"Doughnuts are for any time," Kara replied firmly. "And I can go anywhere in the world for them. Just ask me, okay?"

Lena smiled, still guarded. "One day, I will."

They hugged, close and warm, before Lena stepped back out into the world.

Kara sighed as she watched the town car depart from her window. -You deserve so much more than what you have, Lena.-

\--

"Well, -that- was a fun day in court," Lena sighed as she let Kara into her office.

"You have no idea how much I just wanted to change right there and smash his stupid face before he got into the drama and blowing up the courthouse." Kara sighed. Instead, she'd spent the few stolen moments waiting for Metallo to make a move behind a bench with Lena in a tight, protective embrace. -To keep her safe,- Kara still told herself firmly. -Not- just because I like how she feels in my arms.-

"I'm sorry that turned out so badly," Lena replied softly as they sat down on her couch. "My mother must always make a scene at others' expense."

"Okay, so Lena? This is the part where I turn into a reporter." Kara bit her lip. "Just hear what I have to say. I'm not asking you for anything. Just informing."

Lena had tensed up the second Kara said "turn into", but she dropped her instinctively hunched shoulders and rolled them back. -Kara wouldn't hurt you intentionally. Supergirl wouldn't hurt you. You know her secret.-

"It's gotten out that you were the only visitor to the jail last night. And that you visited your mother."

"You're the one that told me to go!" Lena frowned, her body still tensed up.

"I know." Kara put a soothing hand on Lena's shoulder. "It's just...people are losing it because of your mother's escape. And I wanted you to know so that you could be prepared."

Lena bit her lip hard and cast her gaze onto the floor. She was familiar with this. The vitriolic hatred of anything Luthor, spread out over the last couple of years. "Okay. So, tell me. What are people saying?"

"That you may have also visited Metallo," Kara said sadly.

"And you think that's something I would do," Lena stated flatly.

"No!!" Kara grabbed both of Lena's hands in hers. "I -know- that you only visited Lillian. I -know- you, Lena. I'm just trying to tell you what the press will say tomorrow so you're prepared. That's it!"

Lena caught Kara's gaze and held it. She couldn't see any lie in those sweet, worried blue eyes. "Okay," she whispered. "Okay."

Kara saw the pain, self-hatred, and distrust swirling behind light green irises. Lena was -so- beautiful and yet her psyche held untold, hideous scarring from her life as a Luthor. All Kara wanted to do was protect her. Protect her from the angry world. Give her the true fresh start she wanted.

Maggie burst in a second later.

Kara jumped, hating that Lena had snatched her hands back lightning-quick, as if Kara would be tainted had she been seen holding hands with a Luthor. "Maggie, did you find Lillian?" She stood up, and Lena fled to her desk.

Maggie shook her head. "No, we didn't. We're actually here on official business, Kara. I think it would be better if you waited outside while I talk with Miss Luthor."

Lena glanced at Kara, and she could see pure terror for a moment in her eyes before it was locked away under a leaden shield of resignation.

"No!" Kara couldn't help the word bursting from her mouth. "I'm gonna stay."

Lena's lips thinned into an angry line. "Scared of the press, Detective?"

Maggie scowled. "The police were sent some surveillance footage I wanted to ask you about." She brought up a tablet and showed it to both women.

Lena gasped as someone who definitely wasn't her but looked exactly like her took kryptonite out of a safe. "That's... That's not me, okay? I don't know where you got that, but it's not me." She locked eyes with Kara again. -I swear that's not me!-

Kara blinked and nodded imperceptibly. -I've got your back, Lena.- Once again, she couldn't see any lie in Lena's eyes.

Maggie pulled out her handcuffs and began to tug Lena's arms behind her. "You're under arrest for aiding and abetting a felon, accessory after the fact, conspiracy--"

Kara couldn't bear it, she wanted to pull Lena from Maggie's grip and fly away with her, but she was currently mild-mannered reporter Kara Danvers and there were officers who didn't know her in the room. "Hold on, Maggie, slow down, just let her explain!"

"Stay out of it, Kara!" Maggie warned as she finished snapping on the cuffs. 

"It's okay," Lena said softly to Kara. "Not here." Her eyes had gone glassy.

Kara realized that Lena had whispered that last sentence so softly that only superhearing could pick it up. Her eyes filled with tears. Lena was being taken away for something she didn't do, and she wasn't fighting it, because she knew the world needed to see her thrown in jail, the world needed to hate her. She was twenty-four years old and she -knew- the world needed to hate her. Kara burned with that knowledge as Maggie led Lena out of her own office.

"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you can't afford one, one will be provided for you."

As they left, Lena's assistant Jess came to stand next to Kara, tears streaming down her face.

"You don't think she did it," Jess said to Kara, the statement holding the silent beg, -please please please believe her, I believe her!-

"No, she didn't." Kara couldn't help it, two tears rolling down her own cheeks. "This is some kind of a setup. I've got to get to the truth."

"Thank you," Jess croaked, finding Kara's hand with one of hers and squeezing it while they both stared dolefully at the door.

\--

Kara spent the entire day angry as hell. Everyone was so ready to tell her that Lena was bad. That somehow she, Kara Danvers, the naive cub reporter, was the victim of a long con just like her cousin. As if she was nothing but his shadow, and Lena was nothing but Lex's shadow. And then James asked her to -trust- him? After basically telling her she was an idiot for believing her dear friend? It made Kara so angry she had to punch everything possible. And then she and Mon-El had that infuriating conversation! Kara wasn't ready to admit that, while she was talking to him, his grey eyes had changed to soft green more than once. Lena had flickered over him in her mind's eye. Especially when he'd said "If you don't like me, why do you...why do you care?"

Kara was -confused as hell- in addition to being angry, and none of it was a good look. But then, Winn found the truth of the video, and the kryptonite signature manifested.

"I have to go -now-, or Lena's dead."

Kara's heart broke when she crashed through the warehouse ceiling. She saw Lena being menaced by Cyborg Superman, and then--

"Supergirl, I can't believe you're here!"

Lena's incredulous voice betrayed her. She cried something simple, but Kara heard the truth. -You really believed me? You think I'm worth rescuing?- was Lena's true message.

But they could unpack that later, when death wasn't on the line. "Kara Danvers believes in you," she replied cheekily.

Kara saw red when Cyborg Superman had thrown Lena to the concrete, knocking her out and surely giving her a concussion. But then J'onn had flown in, and they escaped just in time.

"Kara?" Lena whispered as they flew, waking up from the hard knock to her skull.

"Ssh, I got you," Kara replied, squeezing her gently. "We're going to the hospital now."

"I hate flying," Lena croaked. She nuzzled her face into Kara's shoulder.

"Just another minute, I promise. I gotta fly slow because you humans are just too delicate," Kara said, infusing her tone with warmth so Lena knew she was joking.

Lena's response was a tiny, upset moan, and she snaked her arm around Kara's neck, holding on tight.

"I got you," Kara repeated, heart in her throat. "I got you, Lena."

After dropping Lena off at the hospital, Kara flew back to her own apartment.

Hey. We need to take your statement for the record.  
Tomorrow? I need to rest and recharge. I got way too close to all that kryptonite and it's taken a toll.  
First thing.  
Hey, by the way.  
I'm sorry.  
You have a job to do. I know that. My outburst was immature and not helpful.  
I can't blame you. If my best friend was being led out in handcuffs by my sister's girlfriend, I'd be pretty upset too.

-Best friend?- Kara pondered. -Is she really my best, this fast?-

I'm still sorry about that.  
I know. Which is why none of us are saying anything about it in the report. Kara Danvers isn't involved. Just Supergirl.  
Thanks, detective.  
First thing tomorrow, okay?  
You got it.

Kara just stared at her phone, not really seeing it. -Best friends. Best friends with Lena. A Super and a Luthor. Besties.-

After a moment, a smile crept onto her face. -Yeah. I like that. Besties with Lena.-

How are you holding up?  
Lena! You should be resting!  
I am. Jess brought me my phone. I'm here under observation.  
I don't believe you.  
dcim2448.jpg

Lena sent a selfie. She was very clearly in a hospital bed, holding up her arm to show the admission wristband.

They have to keep me here overnight, but they said I could have my phone if I turned on the blue light blocker.  
I'll allow it 🤪  
How are you? All that kryptonite, I know it must have hurt to get close to it.  
I'm recovering. At home, watching Meet Me In St. Louis.  
I've never seen that. Is it good?

Kara spluttered at her screen.

Are you kidding me?! IT'S THE BEST 🔥  
Maybe we could watch it together sometime? If you wanted  
Yes yes yes!!!!! I could watch it a zillion times. As soon as you get out of the hospital, movie night okay??  
Okay.  
I can hear you laughing from here.  
Superhearing?  
No, I just know you're laughing at me.  
Laughing with you, I hope.

Kara smiled softly at the phone.

Yeah. I like that better.

\--

"It's a good article," Lena said as Jess showed Kara into the office. "You flatter me." 

"I only wrote the truth," Kara argued. "I'm learning to keep digging even when all the evidence points one way. And to trust my gut about people."

Lena smiled at that. "Yeah?"

"There's always another side."

"Even when it's hard to find?"

"-Especially- when it's hard to find." Kara grinned. "So, my office is overflowing with flowers."

Lena adopted a coy, puzzled face. "Really?"

Kara narrowed her eyes playfully. "Yeah."

They shared a happy laugh. "You didn't have to do that," Kara protested softly.

"Yeah, I did." Lena's eyes grew wide and innocent. "Supergirl told me that it was you who sent her. I don't know how to thank you."

Kara stifled a giggle. Jess might be able to hear them, so she couldn't let on. "Well, that's what friends are for."

Lena's look turned tender. "I've never had friends like you before. Come to think of it, I've never had family like you." She sighed, and Kara saw her eyes glass over, as they tended to do when she referenced her family in the abstract. "No one has ever stood up for me like that."

Kara nodded, placing her hand over Lena's. "Well, now you have someone that will stand up for you. Always."

"Well, Supergirl may have saved me, but, Kara Danvers, you are my hero." Lena was back to herself, witty, friendly, and ever so slightly flirty.

Kara blushed, because she was pretty sure "flirty" was just part of Lena's general armour against the world and it wasn't actually directed at her. "Thank you. Wanna come over and hang out tomorrow night?"

Lena smiled. "Yeah."

\--

Don't forget to talk to Mon-El.  
He's coming over tonight. That's why I asked for you tomorrow. I might need...well, Maggie called you my best friend. And I think you are? If you want, of course. But I would like to call you that.  
Oh, Kara...yes. Thank you. I feel that way too.

Lena bit her lip to choke back a sob. -Not just dear friends. Best friends. It's been so long...-

Resaved your contact info. Lena "Bestie" Luthor.

Lena laughed in spite of herself. "You're too, too cute, Kara."

Resaved you. Kara "Super Bestie" Danvers.  
Ooh, I like that better. You're Super Bestie now too.  
Oh, and about Mon-El. If he says anything other than yes, he's an idiot, and I'll be there for you. Okay?

Kara smiled at her phone tenderly.

Lena, why didn't you land in my life years ago?  
I wonder that myself sometimes. ❤️

Lena sighed and flopped back on her couch. Maybe the emoji had been too much. Maybe it would tip her hand. Even as she shoved her sweet best friend towards normality, towards heterosexuality, towards someone who deserved her more, maybe--

I'm just glad we have now, super bestie. ❤️❤️❤️

Lena smiled at her phone. -Me too, Kara. Me too.-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *rubs hands gleefully* oh get ready for it...I have PLANZ


	4. mr. and mrs. mxyzptlk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is short because I'm not here to bore you by transcribing canon scenes verbatim you can hit up Netflix for, and it's still said holiday weekend, so I banged it out for you, you're very welcome. I have knuckle-cracking rewriting PLANZ on the go.
> 
> (Since I've decided with this particular fic to not sit on the chapters for days before I publish, minor edits/rewrites may occur.)

You wouldn't believe the day I've had.  
Try me.  
Come over.  
It's hard to text. But.  
Come get some roses.  
What?

"Holy shit, and I thought I was extra," Lena breathed, as she stepped into the apartment. "Mon-El?"

"Nnnnnoooooope." Kara sighed, holding up the biggest and prettiest rose arrangement. "Happy Valentine's Day, bestie?"

Lena laughed as she took them, and prayed Kara wouldn't hear her heart flutter. "I sense one hell of a story."

"You're right. Because you have to put on a ridiculous dress tomorrow morning and be my bridesmaid."

Lena almost dropped the vase. "Come -again-?"

"Yep. Surprise bachelorette party right now. Hope you brought spare underwear, because this is now a sleepover." Kara went and flopped facedown on her couch.

Lena put the flowers back on the kitchen island and jogged over to the couch, kneeling beside it. "You can't just -say- that and leave it there!"

Kara un-smushed her face from the pillow to look at Lena. "What do you know about the fifth dimension?"

Lena's eyes widened. "I think I'd better get the wine."

\--

"And to stop him from giving Mon-El a slow, painful death, I had to agree," Kara sighed.

"I'm going to assume you have a plan," Lena said. She'd traded her heels and skirt suit some time before for a set of Kara's sweats and fuzzy socks with unicorns on them.

"Not yet. But I'm working on it." Kara sighed. "I said to meet me at the Fortress because it's the most remote place on Earth. That way, any damage can be minimized. Til I figure out what I'm doing, though, I have to go along with the wedding plans. Which means I bring my sister for maid of honour, J'onn as my father, and you as my bridesmaid."

Lena smiled softly over the rim of the wineglass. "I'm honoured you want me there, sham or no."

"But don't you see, Lena? I'll have three of the most powerful minds with me. And if I can't think of something, or my plan goes wrong, I -know- you'll think of something. I -know- it." Kara thumped her blanket-clad knee.

Lena blushed, looking down. "You really think so?"

"I know so. And of course I want my best friend at any and all life events. That's kind of the point." Kara smiled. "If it were real, I'd still need you there."

Lena blushed deeper and picked at the blanket. "I don't know what to say."

"You already did. You said you'd always be on my side. Now I'm just making sure you meant it."

Lena looked up, and almost drowned in loving, sincere blue eyes. "I do..."

Kara's breath left her lungs. The sweet, unguarded look in Lena's eyes. The words Mxy had been pressuring her to say. Lena would look perfect in white. And then reality slapped her in the face, because -that's my bestie you're talking about there, Zor-El, and this day's been screwed up enough.-

Lena frowned as Kara choked on air. Thinking that maybe she hadn't said it with the correct tone, she tried again. "I do, Kara. I do mean it. I promise."

"I know you do," Kara wheezed, and she reached out, tugging at Lena's sleeve til the brunette put down her glass and snuggled up against her.

Lena sighed softly as they cuddled into each other. It felt so, so good. It felt right. And Kara had -everyone- fighting over her anyway, so Lena whacked the little pink and white monster of desire that was threatening to escape from the mental box she'd taped shut, and added chains.

"Lamest bachelorette party ever," Kara said after a moment.

"When you marry for real, be assured that I will personally throw the largest, most lavish, least lame bachelorette party for you that this planet has ever -seen-," Lena said, lacing her fingers with Kara's.

"Lena..." Kara looked down, giggling a little and squeezing the slim hand now in hers. She wouldn't think about how wonderful this moment felt. She wouldn't.

"What good are my family's billions if I can't waste them on grand galas? It's a Luthor tradition." Lena's voice betrayed her smirk.

"Happy Valentine's Day, super bestie." Kara smiled, pulling Lena just a -little- closer.

"Happy Valentine's Day, super bestie." Lena closed her eyes happily.

The moment lasted all of thirty seconds, and then, -damn- Lena and her brilliant Luthor-gifted brainpower, she -had- it.

Kara was startled to say the least when Lena sat up suddenly. It was only by the grace of superspeed that she avoiding cracking Lena's head open with her chin.

"I've got it!" Lena yelled. "I've got it. I know how to defeat him!"

Kara's mouth dropped open. "Really?"

"Yes." Lena's eyes glittered. "Provided what you've told me about the Fortress is correct. And you can do all of it yourself."

Kara leaned forward. "Well, do tell!"

\--

"He'll be here in seconds," Kara said as her thumb hovered over the little send button.

"Do you want me to go? Or hide in the bathroom?" Lena frowned. She hadn't considered this when they were making all the plans.

"No!" Kara whirled around to look at her. "No, you can stay right there on the couch and keep the croissants company."

Lena gave her a rueful smile. "The croissants don't need company."

"But -I- do," Kara argued. "I need super bestie moral support. Right there on my couch. Okay?"

Lena sighed, shrugged, and leaned back. "As you wish. Just don't expect the same number of croissants to be here after the dust settles."

Kara smirked. "I'll go get more if I have to." She hit send.

A knock was heard not ten seconds later, and Lena raised her eyebrows.

Kara raised her own and shrugged as if to say "told ya so".

The knock came again. "Yes, I'm coming," Kara called as she walked over to answer it.

"It's not too late, okay?" Mon-El came barrelling in.

"Mon-El..." But Kara wouldn't be able to get a word in edgewise, clearly. So she just closed the door and turned to face the ranting guy she thought she kind of maybe sort of liked, hand to her mouth so she wouldn't mess it up with any accidental expressions.

"You're right. You're right, okay? I'm jealous. I wish I could snap my fingers and give you anything you wish for, and it kills me that he can do that stuff for you and I can't. And I acted badly, okay? Very badly."

Lena arched an eyebrow at that, even though he couldn't see it. He hadn't even seemed to notice her, his focus was so completely on Kara. -Very badly is an understatement, good sir.-

"But please, please do not...do not marry him. I will be better for you!"

Kara sighed and braced herself. "It's not just the jealousy thing, Mon-El. It's the patronizing ego thing. I told you I could handle Mxy, and you didn't listen!"

"I swear to Rao, I will listen! Kara, I -will- respect you, just please, just give me another chance."

Mon-El's pitiful expression was rending Kara's empathetic heart into tiny pieces. She wanted to give it up, she wanted to tell him it was all a lie, but she had to stick to the basic script she and Lena had put together the previous evening. "I'm sorry. I can't. I'm marrying Mxyzptlk."

"Kara, no..." Mon-El's eyes were glimmering with unshed tears.

Kara couldn't believe it. The idiot Daxamite guard, crying over -her- rejection? She decided to give him one, and only one, bone of comfort. "Look, I'm not in love with him, but it's the only way to stop him from hurting other people, and from killing you."

Lena raised both her eyebrows. -Stick to the script, Kara.-

Kara caught Lena's expression and got back on track. "And you know what? He makes an excellent point. He has limitless power that he can use to help me fight for justice. We'll make. A great. Team."

And as she'd predicted, that line was the final nail in the coffin for the alien in front of her. She watched his face crumple for the final time.

"I thought we were going to do that," he whispered after a moment.

"We're too different, Mon-El." Kara sighed and went to the door, opening it.

Mon-El gave her such a heartbroken look that she almost wanted to give in. And behind him was Lena, brows furrowed in sympathy. She reminded herself again what she had to do as she inclined her head towards the door, indicating that he needed to see himself out. "I'm sorry."

Mon-El held her gaze a moment longer, and then he sighed and walked out, defeated.

Kara closed the door behind him and held her breath, then sighed.

"He, um." Lena tilted her head. "He took that well?"

Kara sagged against the door. "I can't do this, Lena."

"This part was your idea," Lena replied. "So that he won't interfere. Remember, -my- idea was just to have Alex toss him in a DEO cell to keep him safe."

Kara walked back over to the couch and flopped down. "I think I just broke his heart."

"But you can unbreak it after this." Lena ignored her shouting heart and slipped her arm around Kara's shoulders. "I'm sure you can. He's absolutely smitten with you, Kara."

Kara sighed and laid her head on Lena's shoulder. "You think so?"

"Darling, I know so. If there's one thing I know from being a woman in the corporate world, it is how men work."

Kara felt a tickle of happy warmth as the word "darling" filtered through her being, and she sighed.

"Now come on. I've got to go home and change and go back to the office. And you, Supergirl, have an imp to put in his place." Lena punctuated the statement with a tap of the finger to Kara's nose. "Also, crinkle." She tapped that with her finger, too.

"Crinkle!" Kara groused. "Now you -and- Alex are teaming up on me!"

"You love it. Also, I'm wearing your sweats out. Better the CEO of L Corp be seen slumming it than in yesterday's boardroom outfit."

"Take my black sneakers," was Kara's only reply. "You might need another pair of socks on top of those to keep them on your feet, though."

Lena smirked. "Thank you, darling."

Kara grinned. "You're welcome, darling."

Lena gathered up her belongings and the big bunch of roses that had been the only survivors of Mxy's flowerbomb, Kara insisting that she had to have them. "Oh, and Kara?"

Kara looked up from her keys. "Yeah?"

"Be careful." Lena smiled.

Kara's answering grin was brighter than the sun.

\--

He asked to come over again. Said he has something he wants to say.  
Time to unbreak his heart. You've got this.  
You're the best ❤️ I'm so glad you're in my corner.  
Always ❤️

Lena gritted her teeth even as she added the heart. This was better. This was right. Supergirl needed a superpowered partner, that was all. And she would support her super bestie until the heat death of the universe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, these absolute idiots. Stay with me. It'll get better. Don't I always deliver?


	5. homecoming

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, -that- fade to black happened. It had to happen, darlings. Just barf into a bucket and never think about it again. I know I'm not.
> 
> Back on Canon Row, Jeremiah throws a wrench into everything, Kara gets fed up with Mon-El for the eight hundred and fifty-second time since he landed, and CADMUS crazy happens.
> 
> On the lighthearted side, there's some more Supercorp bonding, we address some goofy wind physics, and Kara, Lena, and the author have too much fun with emojis as well.

I'm only going to text this, and I'm only going to text it to you, and then I'm going to go on with my day. 🤬  
Sounds serious.  
I asked one thing of him today. One. 🤐 And that was that he not advertise we got together last night.  
Oh, you did? Good for you!  
And you were the only one supposed to KNOW!!! 🤬🤬🤬  
Oh no. What'd he do?  
Basically just walked right into the DEO and made an announcement. Including "and yes, your jealousy is appropriate" at the end.  
Um. 🧐

Lena was getting the hang of emojis, now. She congratulated herself on deploying one correctly. Because yes, her jealousy -was- appropriate, thank you.

THANK YOU! ALL I ASKED. I ASKED ONE THING.  
That does not bode well for further communication.  
🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬 Don't remind me. Everyone just stared at him like he'd dropped a bomb.  
I can imagine.  
J'onn hit us both with a mandatory visit to HR to fill out paperwork.  
Dating inside the office does have its perils.  
And Alex 😒 smirked way too much when she told us we'd have to attend a sexual harassment seminar. 😑  
That's her way of showing love, right? 🤭

"Holy CADMUS cream egg!" Winn exclaimed.

Kara looked up from her phone, then back down again for just a moment longer.

Something CADMUS just popped up. Info when I can.  
Okay

Lena huffed at her phone. Whatever it was, she knew Kara would keep her up to date. She pressed the intercom button on her desk phone. "Jess? Can you cancel that dinner with Edge Technologies tonight?"

"Mister Edge will be upset you blew him off again."

"He's the least of my worries. He knows he's a seller and I'm a buyer."

Lena hit the button again and leaned back in her chair, sighing. She had a feeling that her evening would contain Kara at some point, and she wanted to be available in case she was needed to decode Psychotic Luthor-ese.

\--

"CADMUS had my father this whole time," Kara began the second she began pushing the balcony door ajar. "He was the weapon we were alerted to."

Lena swiveled her chair around to face the caped superhero. "And hello to you, too."

"Sorry," Kara fretted, "but I only have a short break so let me just fill you in, okay?"

Lena nodded, and Kara opened her mouth again.

"So...family dinner tonight?" Kara twisted her hands together as she finished telling the morning's tale. "Will you come?"

Lena blinked. "Don't you want your boyfriend to be there with you? Especially if Alex is bringing Maggie?"

Kara frowned. "He's coming, but J'onn is too, and it's an odd number otherwise. Plus, I want Jeremiah to meet my best friend." Kara pouted just a little.

"Who is the daughter of his torturer, mind you," Lena drawled.

Kara huffed. "He'll take you on your own merits! Trust me."

"I still think I should try to develop a plan and device to jam the bomb," Lena said, fretfully. "I know how my mother works, and while I may not know how your heat vision works, I--"

"I promise tomorrow morning I will come to you and you can ask me to do whatever to get that going," Kara said, "but tonight? Please, please come to dinner and meet all of my family."

Lena sighed. Truth be told, she was -terrified-. Family wasn't something she did, not like normal families. She had grown up in such a dysfunctional household, family dinners often consisted of Lex in his books, Lionel deep in monthly asset reports, and Lillian smacking her hand sharply if she reached for the wrong fork. When she was twelve and home for breaks, Lillian began allowing her to read at the table too, but only the textbooks she approved of. There was little to no talking involved at Luthor family dinners, and there certainly hadn't been any joy to be found.

Kara bit her lip, suddenly teary. She hadn't realized until that moment how badly she -needed- Lena by her side that night. "Lena...?"

Lena nodded once. "Okay. I'll be there. Should I bring anything?"

"No, but I know you will anyway." Kara brushed her hand down Lena's shoulder and arm in lieu of a hug since the brunette was still seated.

"Supergirl, we need you."

Lena saw the minute head tilt that meant Kara was listening to her DEO comms. "Go. See you tonight?"

Kara grinned at her. "See you tonight."

Lena barely slammed her arms down over her loose paperwork before Kara zoomed out and created the usual breeze, and some still escaped. "One day I'll make you remember to close that door!" she groused as she put her desk back together.

\--

Lena arrived for dinner a moment or two after Mon-El, with two bottles of wine in her hands.

"Goodness, what a vintage!" Eliza exclaimed as she took the bottles to put in the fridge. "Fancy for a simple family dinner."

Lena blushed in embarrassment, and Kara ran over to wrap her arms around her shoulders.

"Lena likes to treat her people," Kara said quickly. "You just wanted the best for my parents, right Lena?"

Lena smiled, but her eyes didn't leave the floor. "Yeah."

Eliza crossed to her and placed a friendly hand on her shoulder. "I didn't mean to make a fuss, dear. I'm honoured, and so is Jeremiah."

"So, the famous Lena Luthor," said Jeremiah as he came up to stand next to Kara.

Lena inhaled sharply, she couldn't help it, and Kara's arms tightened around her in support.

"I have already heard a novel's worth about -you- from my youngest daughter," Jeremiah continued. "All the brilliant things you've done."

Lena looked up at him, any reply completely escaping her.

"You're nothing like your mother," Jeremiah assured her softly. "I've heard those tales too, how you have refused time and time again to be part of her schemes."

"Does it piss her off?" Lena whispered.

"Oh, honey." Jeremiah shared a conspiratorial smile. "Every single day."

Lena finally smiled back at that.

Eliza squeezed Lena's shoulder and then let go. "Kids! Drinks are ready."

"I'm ready!" Alex answered, getting up from the couch where she had been sitting with Mon-El and Maggie.

"Here we go," said Jeremiah, pouring margaritas for everyone with his good hand.

"Let me help," Kara said quickly, supporting the bottom of the pitcher.

"Ah, thank you."

"Sorry I'm late," said J'onn as he let himself in.

"Oh, don't be silly, J'onn!" Eliza said, smiling at her old friend.

"Oh, hey! I forgot to do something earlier." Jeremiah threw his good arm around J'onn, who returned the favour and hugged back just as tightly.

"Thank you," Jeremiah continued once they'd let go of each other. "Thank you for saving my life again. Thank you for keeping your promise to watch over my girls."

"It was an honor." J'onn smiled at him.

Kara held her glass out. "A toast. To coming home."

"Coming home," the group murmured, clinking their glasses together and taking a drink.

"Now, obviously, this is going to be a time of adjustment. But I hope you'll all be patient with me. I've seen and done things that I wish I hadn't." 

"Dad, don't," Alex tried to stop him.

"No, sweetie. If I'm going to move forward, I can't ignore my past. Cadmus...changed me. They tried to break me. But in the process, they made me dangerous. I know their weaknesses, and I'm here...to work with all of you to make our planet safer. So, if you'll have me, Director, I'd like to return to the DEO. Formally."

"J'onn? Can he?" Kara asked timidly.

"Pending a full psych evaluation and a field readiness exam. We'll give you the tour tomorrow."

"Thank you, friend." 

Lena smiled at the happiness on Kara's and Alex's faces. She could see the signs of PTSD on Jeremiah, though, and she knew he would fail the psych eval. -J'onn might let him in anyway,- she thought to herself. -He'd still be an asset in the fight against my mother, though.-

"When you get a chance," Lena said smoothly, "I'd really love to pick your brain about anything you've seen my mother work on. Staying two steps ahead of her will keep us all safe, and I know how her mind works."

J'onn nodded. "That's a very good idea, Lena. We can also give you access to the debriefing he'll have to have tomorrow as well."

"If you can figure out what she's doing, I'll tell you everything I know, even if I don't understand it."

"-Especially- if you don't understand it," Lena replied. "I'm the only living translator of the Luthor madness, and it can become very, very obscure quickly."

Jeremiah nodded. "I'll say."

Mon-El spoke softly to Kara, he couldn't help himself. "I'm in the DEO for two months before I can pee alone, and he just walks right back in?"

Kara growled. "Say something nice to him. Now."

Mon-El cleared his throat. "I just wish you were coming back at a time of peace, sir."

"We all do," Kara chimed in quickly.

"What a lucky thing that...you have returned...when you did." Mon-El was fighting for diplomatic words.

Lena scowled at him. -Idiot.-

"You mean when he was rescued, right, Mon-El?" Alex prompted.

"Um... I mean, that it is very fortunate that Dr. Danvers has returned just as a fusion bomb has become a threat. A fusion bomb that only he's mentioned and no one else has seen. I mean, what a gift." 

"What did you just say to my father?" Alex's voice had become soft, dangerous. Maggie shot an "oh shit" glance at Lena, who widened her eyes in response.

"Is this even real right now?" Lena muttered, so softly that only Kara and Mon-El heard it.

"And now he's just gonna go right back to the DEO. With full access, I'm guessing, right, J'onn? No background checks for your old soldier buddy!"

Alex's anger hit a snapping point. "You know what?" She advanced on him.

"No, no, I got it," Kara insisted, taking Mon-El's shoulder and literally pulling him away.

"You need to back up!" Alex snarled.

Mon-El was oblivious, determined to say his piece. "Why don't you just let him right back in?"

Kara led him away quickly.

"What? Why are you pushing me?" Mon-El demanded sotto voce as Kara pushed him into her bedroom area and folded her arms defensively. "So, we're just gonna give him free rein? Why is... Why is no one questioning this? Is that not crazy?"

"If your father walked through that door right now, after all these years that you thought he was dead, what would you do?"

"I would run."

"Run?" Kara couldn't believe her ears.

"Because he was not a good man. So..."

"You know what? I'm sorry about that. But this is not about you. And your -suspicion-, and your -disrespect- are out of line. And you need to leave my home."

Lena smiled as she heard Kara standing up for herself. -That's my girl.-

"Kara..."

"No."

"That's the..."

"No, -no!- You've ignored what I need from moment one today. I asked for privacy and time and you ignored that. And I asked you to give Jeremiah the benefit of the doubt and you ignored that too. So I don't..."

"Okay, okay, hey! I'm sorry. That is two strikes on me, okay, but let's just... Let's let it go?"

Kara scoffed angrily. "I am not baseball. And unless you learn that what I say counts, this isn't going to work."

She and Mon-El regarded each other for a long, hard moment.

Jeremiah walked over once it was clear that Kara was done speaking. "Why don't I show you out?"

Kara nodded, expression grim. "I think that's a really good idea."

Mon-El scowled, but realized he'd lost the argument. "Okay," he finally replied softly. "I was heading out, anyway." He was careful not to touch Kara as he walked past her, ignoring the frozen group still gathered around the kitchen island.

Once the door had closed behind them and they were both in the hall, Mon-El began again. "Sir, as a scientist, you have to believe in questioning. That's all I was trying to do in there. I'm sorry if I hurt you."

Jeremiah's expression was grim. "I know who you are."

Mon-El stared daggers at him. "And?"

"That's it. I know who you are. And I doubt Kara would like the truth."

Jeremiah left him standing in the hall, silent.

"Well, all that talking has left me thirsty," Jeremiah declared as he walked back over to the kitchen island. "Do you think we made enough margarita, Eliza?"

Eliza smirked. "We'll find out. And if not, Lena brought us some great wine that we'll just break out before dinner."

"Lena's contributions to Game Night are always the most welcome," Alex said, laughing a little.

"You don't like my vegan taquitos?" Maggie cut in immediately. "Rude."

Thankfully, it only took a few moments to restore the good mood of the group, and the dinner went off nicely, Lena sitting next to Kara in the seat that Mon-El was supposed to have.

\--

I'm so so so so angry right now  
What's wrong?  
Alex thinks I'm choosing sides and she said I wasn't part of the family anymore  
Oh god. She doesn't mean that.  
I told her that but she just got even angrier  
I feel so sick  
I have ten minutes til my next meeting. Want a hug? ❤️

Lena had never sent a text like that before. Touching was a weapon in the Luthor family. But for Kara, touch was healing, positive. And since Alex was mad at her, she couldn't get a hug from her. Lena was a poor substitute in her own mind, but seconds after she hit send, boots thudded on her balcony just a touch too hard.

Lena stood up and pulled the distraught superhero into her arms without reservation. Kara curled instantly into her and tried to hold back her tears.

"Let it out," Lena murmured. "It's okay, I've got you."

"Ruin your pretty shirt," Kara choked. "Next meeting so soon."

"I've got a week's worth of spare outfits here, Kara," Lena soothed. "I'll put on another shirt before my meeting. Let it out, darling."

Kara let the dam break and crash over her. Her worst childhood fears were rushing back. Teenage Alex hadn't wanted a sister, let alone an alien, and their first year together had been rough. There had been quite a few hissed "you're -not- my sister!"s and more than a couple knockdown dragouts where Alex threatened to run away if Kara didn't get packed up and sent to a foster home.

Lena closed her eyes and held on, letting Kara's tears soak her flimsy silk blouse. After a moment, she started swaying slowly, like Kara had done with her months ago when she'd cried -her- heart out.

"I'm scared," Kara whispered after a minute. "What if Jeremiah really is spying for CADMUS?"

"Then we deal with that," Lena murmured. "But that's not for this moment."

"What if he is a spy and we take him down and Alex stops loving me because of it?" Kara cried, the thought of it redoubling her tears.

"Alex will never stop loving you," Lena replied. "I don't know her very well, but that's the one thing I -do- know. She will love you til the day she dies. You're her sister."

"How do you know?"

Lena sighed. "Because I will always love Lex, even as I want him to stay locked up forever for his crimes. And he will always love me, in his own twisted way. We grew up as brother and sister. That love can't just be erased."

Kara lifted her head off Lena's shoulder to look into her eyes. "Yeah?" she whispered.

"Yeah," Lena whispered back. "It's forever." She loosened her hold on Kara to gently wipe the tear tracks off the blonde's cheeks. "I promise. I know Alex feels the same way in her heart, even if she's not coping with this very well right now."

Kara tried to smile, but she suppressed a sob instead and buried her face back in Lena's shoulder.

"Shsh," Lena hummed, tightening her embrace. "I've got you, darling."

"Miss Luthor, two minutes til your next appointment."

Lena leaned over just enough to hit the button. "Can we delay for fifteen minutes?"

"Ten. Or your schedule will get too backed up."

"I can go," Kara whispered as softly as she could so that Jess couldn't hear her.

"Ten it is. Let me know at two." Lena hit the button and wrapped her arm back around Kara.

"Lena, you shouldn't--"

"What are best friends for?" Lena dropped a kiss on Kara's hair before she realized it and almost froze up, but Kara prevented that by snuggling in closer.

"Super besties," Kara murmured.

By Jess's next two minute warning, Lena had gotten a new shirt out of her office closet and allowed Kara to superspeed it onto her.

"Thanks, Lena," Kara said softly, turning to go.

"Keep me updated?" Lena smiled as she sat back down in her chair.

"Always."

"Close the door!"

Lena's admonishment was just one second too late, and she spent the rest of her allotted time trying to put her papers back in order.

Close👏 My👏 Door👏 When👏 You👏 Leave👏 Supergirl👏👏👏  
🥺 I'm so sorry! I'll try to remember next time 😢  
Yeah. Keyword being "try" 🤪  
You're awfulllll, and also when did you learn the clapping thing?  
I'm the best actually, and Twitter 😊  
Super best. ❤️

\--

I need you.  
I'm coming.

"It's unlocked," Kara called from her miserable ball on the couch.

Lena stepped inside. "Lock it, or?"

"No. Leave it."

Lena unlaced her sneakers and left them by the door. She'd been at late night spin class, but with everything Kara had told her earlier in the day, she'd hopped off her bike and left for the blonde's apartment immediately. She padded over to the couch. "Hey."

"Hi."

"Come on, let me get in there," Lena replied softly.

Kara sat up and allowed Lena to take the part of the couch where her head had been, but then she sighed with content as Lena's arms snaked around her and pulled her back to rest against her.

"Something bad happened, didn't it," Lena murmured after a few moments of holding Kara close and stroking her hair.

"Yes," Kara whimpered.

"I'm sorry, darling." Obviously the worst had happened, that Jeremiah was a spy for her mother after all, but Lena wasn't about to ask Kara to relive what had surely been a hideous last few hours. No, what she needed was love and support, and even if Lena didn't have too much of a frame of reference for either concept, she knew that right here was where she should be.

Kara focused on the beat of Lena's heart. One of the things she liked the most about her best friend was that Lena didn't feel the need to fill every single moment with the spoken word the way Mon-El did. The more time she spent with him, the more she wondered if it was all a mistake. Two days in and all kinds of awfulness had occurred. Maybe she just needed to be single again.

-Maybe you just need her,- said a very small voice in the back of her brain. -Maybe you should spend your love on her.-

-I can't think about anything like that right now,- Kara admonished the little voice. -Leave me alone!-

The voice obeyed, and Kara let out a sigh.

"Okay there?" Lena whispered.

"Yeah," Kara whispered back.

"Do you need anything else?"

Kara let her exhaustion, fear, and vulnerability out then. "To wake up with me?"

"Of course," Lena murmured back, absolutely floored by the new level of intimacy. During the Mxyzptlk encounter, Kara had fallen asleep on the couch while insisting Lena take the bed, but this? The insinuation was clear: Kara wanted to sleep next to her. And god, Lena was the biggest sap on the planet, and she feared with good reason that she was falling irrevocably in love with her best friend.

"Really?" Kara breathed. She hadn't meant it to sound -quite- so needy, but the ease with which Lena agreed soothed her angry heart.

"I'd love to," Lena assured her gently. "Borrow your sweats again?"

"Naturally," Kara mumbled, nuzzling into Lena's shoulder.

"Now, or?" Lena kept stroking Kara's silky hair, carding her fingers lightly through the curls.

"I like it here right now," Kara murmured. "Warm and cozy."

Lena smiled gently. "Me too."

And then Kara's phone rang, with Winn's ringtone.

Lena sighed silently as Kara shot upright to grab the phone. -Ten to one it's Supergirl time.-

"Winn, did you figure out what Jeremiah stole from the DEO computers?"

"It's not good, Kara. He took the national alien registry."

"Okay, Lena and I are coming in."

Lena frowned. "What did he say?"

Kara stared at the phone in her hand. "Cadmus has the list of all the aliens in the country." She looked up at Lena.

Lena's expression was pure horror. -My mother has WHAT?- "What do we do?"

Kara sighed. "We get up." She slapped her knees to punctuate it and stood up, moving towards the door.

Lena sighed. She was pretty sure no one involved with the DEO was getting any sleep tonight. "Yeah. We do."

"Do you mind flying?" Kara asked as she changed with superspeed behind the bedroom partition.

Lena shook her head as she slipped her feet back into her sneakers. "We haven't got time for my fears." She laced both shoes quickly.

"I'm still sorry." Kara beckoned her to the window. "Up, up, and away?"

Lena slipped her arms around Kara's neck as she was lifted into the usual bridal hold. "Yeah."

She tried to keep her frightened heartrate down as they sped through the air to the DEO.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The seeds of dissent have been well and truly sown...
> 
> Also, ever since I learned that I can put emojis in here as well as my word processor, I have been crazy with the cheez whiz and the only cure is more snappy Supercorp texting.


	6. exodus

"That's the 20th abduction since CADMUS got the alien registry," Kara said, pacing.

"And they're escalating. Getting more aggressive." J'onn scowled at the pictures displayed on the DEO screens. "Are we any closer to finding out where CADMUS is taking them?"

"Or what they want? 'Cause that is the trillion dollar question," Mon-El said.

"It's million dollar question, buddy," Winn snarked. 

"Really? That low?" Mon-El seemed perplexed, and Lena quirked an eyebrow at the implication. 

"Yes, and...um, -no- on all counts," Winn replied.

"I can't figure it out," Lena said. "I've been combing through the records the DEO has for any information that might be a tip as to what Mother is thinking. The only things I've come up with are theories, and none of them very optimistic." She bit her lip in frustration.

"I mean, I've monitored traffic cams, sat feeds, cell phone chatter, uh..." Winn swallowed nervously. "Maybe Jeremiah taught them how to avoid our radar."

"From now on Jeremiah Danvers is an enemy combatant," J'onn said firmly.

Lena reached for Kara's hand and squeezed it. She would do the same for Alex, but she was pretty sure the gesture would be rejected.

"What does that mean?" Mon-El asked.

"It means, if found, he's to be arrested on sight. That's not a problem, is it?" J'onn looked directly at both Danvers sisters.

"Of course not," Alex replied, lifting her chin defiantly.

"Good." J'onn and Alex held eye contact for a moment, a battle of wills that Lena and everyone else could see.

"We have to let all these aliens know. They need to be able to protect themselves," Kara said.

"I volunteer to tell everybody at the alien dive bar," Mon-El offered.

"But it's not enough to just let all the aliens in the bar know. There are hundreds more on that list. Can you issue a statement?"

"Not without compromising the DEO. We're off the books for a reason," J'onn reminded them.

"So do it anin..iminously," Mon-El managed to spit out.

Lena and Alex shared a look, both trying to hide their smirks.

"If we do it -anonymously,- no one will take us seriously." Kara furrowed her brow as a thought came to her. "But they -might- listen to CatCo. I'll write an article, get it on the front page."

"You think Snapper would run that?" Alex asked.

"Yeah, of course. Absolutely."

\--

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh 😠😡🤬  
Let me guess. Snapper wasn't amenable.  
NOPE. 😠  
I'm sorry, darling. 🤐 You could always be a citizen journalist, and post it to a blog or some other social media?  
You might be on to something there. A citizen journalist?  
It's a thought, and I wouldn't blame you if you decided to play it safe. It might have consequences.  
Consequences bigger than thousands of civilian deaths? 🙅 No.  
Anyway, Snapper said he'd consider talking to Supergirl, so that's something. You at the DEO still?  
No, I went to my office for awhile. I can't be away too long. If someone were to say to anyone else that I seem "absent"...  
Got it got it. When does your schedule stop for the evening?  
8?  
LENA 😭  
THAT'S TORTURE 😭😭😭😭😭  
Life at the "top" 🤷  
I'll bring dinner and we can talk, okay? Catch up.  
Yes, dear.  
Whatever you say.

"I just feel like there's poetic justice at work. My adoptive father, your adoptive mother."

"Trying to make the world unbearable for us both," Lena sighed. "At least I know why Mother's doing this."

"Yeah, she hates aliens."

"No." Lena halted Kara's pacing with a hand to her shoulder. "She hates Superman even more than Lex. She believes that Superman caused Lex's madness. And she wants to destroy him. You're icing on the cake, and I have no doubt that, if she ever gets her hands on you again, you will be tortured and put on display for Superman to watch."

Kara just stared, watching the storm of emotions in Lena's eyes. The pain, the paranoia, the anxiety, the...love?

"We can't let that happen," Lena whispered. "I won't let it happen."

"I won't let it happen either." Kara slid her hand over Lena's. "I'll keep us both safe."

"As will I." Lena sighed. "I'll admit to being terrified. I want to lock you in a lab in a place she doesn't know. So she can't get to you, ever."

"I appreciate the feeling behind the thought." Kara smiled softly. "But we'll get her. All of us working together? She can never win."

"I hope so," Lena sighed.

KARA JONN TRICKED ME  
What?

Kara fiddled with her chirping phone, frowning.

HE FUCKING TRICKED ME  
Okay slow down  
Tell me  
Lena's with me, is it okay if she sees?  
Yeah

Kara and Lena sat down together on the couch and watched Alex pour her heart out via text.

"I...is it bad if I said I've never really liked that guy?" Lena asked as the final "HE SUSPENDED ME" blossomed on the screen.

Kara sighed. "He's a good man, Lena. Even if I don't always agree. But I kind of do here."

Lena frowned. "Huh?"

J'onn shouldn't have done that to you.  
But I heard that you lost it interrogating a suspect. What's going ON, sis?  
That doesn't matter  
What matters is our father and there's still good in him  
I NEED you to convince J'onn  
I have to be there when we find CADMUS  
I have to protect him!  
Alex, you aren't yourself. You could get hurt. Or hurt others.  
I'm sorry, I agree with J'onn.  
I'm gonna go be with Maggie  
At the bar  
Be safe?  
Always

Kara sighed. "I don't like this. I don't like it at all."

Lena hugged her around the shoulders. "We are gonna fix it, Kara. We are. And if we're lucky, we'll get your father back for good."

Kara sighed. "Rao, I hope so."

\--

"Found it," the young assistant to Jess said, running in as best she could in her heels. "The annual budget report from last year."

"Alana, take a look at this. Did you know that Luthor Corp shuttered my brother's naval research facility back in 2007?"

"I was in the 8th grade."

Lena smirked. -And I was in university despite being fourteen.- "Well, if it's been shut down for ten years, why did L Corp get billed for a metals shipment last month? It doesn't make any sense."

"Accounting just switched operating systems. Could be a glitch." Alana shrugged.

Lena kept her expression neutral. -You work for my mother, don't you? That was too glib.- "You go to the archives and get me the tax returns and annual budgets for the last twenty years."

"Right away, Miss Luthor."

Alana clicked her comm on the second she closed the door and began to walk away. "It's me. She found out about the site."

"My daughter is certainly persistent. But I can't let her interfere with our plans."

"Should I take care of her?"

"Yes. But nothing permanent. She just needs to be redirected."

"Consider it done." Alana smirked as she walked away.

The errand that Lena had sent her assistant's assistant on was misdirection. She had everything she needed already. She smiled as she picked up her phone and dialed the first number in her recents, looking out over the city.

Kara picked up instantly. "Lena?"

Lena cut straight to the chase, in case someone was listening in. "I found something. Activity at a Luthor facility that's supposedly defunct." She saw the reflections behind her. -Mother's goons.- "It's big enough to build almost anything." She took the taser out of her purse. "Or to hide something." She tasered the first guy neatly.

Kara heard the electricity arc. -Oh no.- "Lena?"

"Stay back!" Lena had dropped her phone, and as she backed out onto the balcony she cursed herself for it.

"Lena!" Kara tore off her glasses and ripped her shirt open.

"What's wrong?" Mon-El looked up from his delivery menu.

"Lena!" Kara flew out the window.

Meanwhile, Lena was losing her fight against the black-clad goons, and as they tried to grab her, she leaned back and accidentally fell over the side of the building with a scream.

But Kara was there instantly, rearranging her into a bridal hold and rising slowly, triumphantly, back up to the correct floor, Lena's arms wrapped firmly around her shoulders. "Dropped something?" she taunted before using her freeze breath to knock them over.

"Thank you, Supergirl," Lena said as Kara let her down, quickly noticing that the goons were still conscious and could therefore still hear. She lifted a finger to her lips, and Kara nodded.

"You're very welcome, Miss Luthor."

"I'm so glad you're here," Lena continued. "I have something you need to know. CADMUS and the missing aliens. I know where they are now."

"Then let's go."

"Can I change?" Lena indicated her little black dress.

"Two minutes?" Kara smiled.

Lena vanished into her office closet and came back ninety seconds later in tactical cargo pants, a leather jacket, and military boots, all black and perfectly fitted to her.

Kara's nostrils flared. -Sweet Rao, she's hot. No use denying it.-

"Let's go!" Lena finished a text to Maggie about the injured thugs on her balcony. She almost hopped into Kara's arms, and they flew off.

"Some sort of ship is launching!" Kara said as she listened to the DEO comms while they flew.

"Put me down at the entrance to the station and I'll help deal with ground side," Lena ordered.

Lillian had already vanished by the time Lena had her boots on the ground, but she waded in, taking down lower-level goons until Kara brought the frigate back.

"I'm so tired," Kara whispered once she dragged in, Alex supporting her.

"Of course you are," Lena whispered as they reached for one another.

Alex smirked as she let Kara go to fall into Lena's embrace. -Suddenly, I have a feeling I'm not the only queer Danvers girl.-

"Did you solar flare?" Lena murmured softly into Kara's hair.

"No, I can go home."

"Can I take you there? In one of my nicer cars, of course."

Kara sighed. "I'd...I'd like that."

Later, in the backseat of one of Lena's smaller limos, Kara laid her head on Lena's shoulder with a soft sigh.

"I can stay for awhile if you'd like," Lena offered softly.

Kara sat up and looked at her, affection shimmering in her eyes even through the exhaustion. "Can I...would you wake up with me? Again?"

Lena smiled and took Kara's hand. "I'd love to. Again."

"Phone's on silent," Kara said, showing Lena the screen. "I'm off-duty."

"Then let's curl up in front of a movie and go to sleep after."

"Meet Me In St. Louis?" Kara smiled hopefully.

"Anything you want," Lena assured her.

\--

"Okay, so pajamas and then a blanket fort," Kara said as they entered her apartment.

Lena nodded. "Wait. How do you make a blanket fort?"

Kara gasped. "You never had them growing up, did you." She frowned.

"Nope. But you can show me now." Lena smiled back.

"Okay. Pick anything you want out of my stuff for pajamas, and I'll get the fort built."

While Lena found a drawstring pair of shorts and a sleeveless shirt that looked too soft to be real, Kara sped around (half-superspeed was still too fast for human eyes) creating a tent with a big opening to accommodate the TV, piling all the pillows and soft things she owned inside it. Lena's first blanket fort would be nothing short of -amazing-. She added some battery-powered fairy lights and a few of her fake candles, smiling as they flickered gently.

Lena came out, finishing off the relaxed braid she usually slept with her hair in, and gasped with wonder.

Kara was popping popcorn in the microwave. "Go on, get in there," she called as she pulled out a big bowl for the popcorn to go into.

Lena knelt down and crawled in, quickly making herself comfortable amid the soft pillows and warm blankets. She sighed happily. They all smelled like Kara's home, like Kara herself. She gazed up at the little spots of light above the topmost sheet. She knew they were just cheap fairy lights, but in this case, they were magical.

Kara crawled in a moment later, bowl of popcorn being pushed in first. She handed Lena a seltzer and popped her own open. "Did you find the remote?"

Lena picked it up and handed it to her, grinning.

"Before we start..." Kara locked gazes with Lena. "I just want..."

"What? Are you okay?" Lena frowned slightly.

"I got...really -scared- when I heard you scream through the phone and I had to save you from falling to your death." Kara bit her lip hard. "And I realized as I held you that I've never told you how much I love you."

Lena's eyes filled with tears. "But... you've shown..."

"I've shown, but I've never -said-," Kara replied. "Heart emojis don't count. You're my best friend, Lena, and I love you so, so much. I know you might not be able to say it back, because of how you grew up, but it's okay, because you show me all the time."

"I love you too," Lena managed to whisper. "I need you to know that."

Kara pulled her into a tight hug, and they cried their emotions out to manageable levels before curling up together and putting on 9 To 5 in order to restore their good moods.

The rushed morning between packing Lena back off to L Corp, getting Kara ready for the day, and taking down the blanket fort without making an unholy mess was still worth falling asleep curled into one another, Kara's arm slung possessively around Lena in her sleep. They slept well and sweetly, secure in their small blanket bubble with one another.

"Have a good day at work, darling," Lena said as she hugged Kara again before almost tripping out the door in her haste to -not- be late to her first videoconference of the day.

"I'll try!" Kara hummed happily.

\--

I lost my job. 🖤🖤🖤  
Oh, Kara. I'm sorry. ❤️  
Me too.  
I feel like I pushed you into publishing the blog.  
No, Mon-El did, honestly. And I wanted him to. I wanted you both to. 🙄  
Doesn't mean I'm not sorry you got fired.  
Do you want a job at L Corp? Write your own job description. 💯  
That sounds amazing. But I need to grieve my dream first.  
I understand. Let me know if I can do anything? ❤️  
Of course. He's coming over with potstickers now 😋  
Then hit me up for pizza later 😎  
Super bestie! ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

Lena sighed and slumped back, closing her eyes. Kara's world had just tipped upside down, -again-. And she wanted to be the one with potstickers at Kara's door, she did. But the jealous, scheming Luthor hiding in her heart told her to wait, to watch, and to be ready when that manchild broke her super bestie's heart for the final time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know. You all have to know by now what I'm leading up to, here.
> 
> I promise it will be beautiful and gorgeous by the end of the season.


	7. star-crossed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because there's like, almost two whole days where Kara is not involved in things. Ha HA! Oh yes, I checked the time skips and what Kara wears throughout.

Lena heard boots hit her balcony again. Luckily, she'd just seen the latest investors from South Africa out of her office. She supposed that Kara had been listening and waiting.

"Yes, dear?" she asked sarcastically as she opened her balcony door.

But then, Lena stopped dead in her tracks seeing the devastation on Kara's face. "Oh no," she whispered. "What's wrong?"

Kara swept in and immediately curled up into a ball on the couch. "Remember how Mon-El was one of the palace guards on Daxam?"

Lena walked over slowly, nodding as she sank down next to Kara. "Does this have anything to do with the large spaceship currently in low orbit over us?"

Kara inhaled sharply, a sob tearing from her. "He's the prince. The nasty, horrible Crown Prince of Daxam."

Lena gasped herself, eyes widening. She'd read up on Daxam and its history. Including the last Crown Prince, believed dead with his family back on the smoldering ruins of their planet. "Holy shit."

"Everything about him has been a lie, Lena," Kara cried. "And the sex isn't even that good!"

"Aaaand I am pretending I didn't hear that." Lena pulled Kara gently out of her fetal position and into her arms. "Nevertheless. I guess I can see why he lied. I probably would have too."

Kara snorted indignantly. "You, Lena Luthor, have never tried to lie about your family. -You- spend your time trying -and- succeeding at being a better person despite what your family did. You have more integrity in your pinkie than that frat bro does in his -whole body-!"

"Sssh," Lena replied, rocking Kara back and forth. "Don't yell. It'll bring Jess in and she has enough to do now that her assistant is gone."

Kara frowned, looking up at Lena. "What?"

Lena nodded. "I wish I knew what benefits package Mother offers these spies so I could double it and save so much stress."

"Uuggghhhh," Kara groaned as she let her head fall onto Lena's shoulder. "I'm sorry."

Lena sighed. "It's in the past, must move on."

"How do I move on? He -lied- to me about who he was! We had -dinner- last night with his parents on that stupid spaceship and they told me everything. Everything he said he stood for...he doesn't! He stands for greed, slavery, murder..."

"Easy, Kara," Lena soothed, combing her fingers through blonde curls. "Surely he isn't -that- terrible? I mean, he's changing, right?"

The words stuck like glue in her throat. It hurt to say them. -This is your chance!- the nasty small Luthor voice piped up. -You could have it all, you could have her!-

-I want her without a breakup involved,- Lena argued back. -On her own, because she wants me, not because I'm a consolation prize!-

"How can I trust that he's actually changing?" Kara sobbed. "It was so easy to lie and keep lying to me, to all of us. How do I know when the lies stop?"

Lena sighed. "I guess you can't."

"There's one part of me telling me that I should go be alone," Kara whispered. "Sit at home and feel sorry for myself without dragging anyone else down with my anger and grief."

"What does the other part say?" Lena murmured, hopeful.

"That I need to stay with you," Kara sighed. "That I shouldn't be alone, and that I need super bestie time. Winn's in trouble, the rest of the Superfriends are dealing with it, and right after Alex said I shouldn't go with them, Mon-El's stupid -mother- demanded to speak to me and basically made me feel like crap. And by the time we were done trading barbs, everyone else was -gone- but he was still in the DEO. So I told him that his mother wanted to talk to him, and he was stupid about it and I yelled at him and I just knew I had to come here." Kara stifled a sob. "And I'm sorry I didn't text first, but I just felt like the world wanted to swallow me and all I wanted was to come talk to -you-." Kara tightened her arms around Lena and sniffled.

Lena sighed as well. "I can't rearrange my entire day, Kara. But I'll try to make it as early of an evening as I can, okay?"

"And we can put the blanket fort back up, right?"

Lena nodded. "You can do that. And get us snacks and stuff. And we can watch a bunch of women-power things on TV."

Kara looked up at her, smiling. "And I can get whatever I want?"

"I won't let you leave without a prepaid card," Lena replied, smiling back. "Funemployment money does not remotely pay for the caliber of grief blanket fort provisions we need."

Kara giggled. "Mean it?"

"I do. In fact, I think you should spend the rest of the day getting the very best provisions possible," Lena said, adopting a serious look and nodding.

"Yeah," Kara whispered, nodding back.

"Operation Super Bestie Blanket Fort is officially active," Lena said, smiling. She checked her watch. "And you have just enough time to run out of here before my next appointment."

Kara grinned and got up. "Yes, Miss Luthor. Right away, Miss Luthor."

Lena shook her head and rolled her eyes. She sat back down at her desk, unlocking a drawer and pulling out a credit card.

"And close my door before you leave," she reminded Kara, handing the card over.

Kara laughed and made a show of slowly closing the glass door behind her before flying away.

\--

"Kara," Mon-El pleaded in the hall as Lena walked up, overnight bag slung over her shoulder. "Can't we just talk?"

"No," Kara said, scowling. "I have nothing to say to you!"

"Listen, if you just give me a chance to explain how I--oh, hi Lena," Mon-El said as he realized she was there.

"Go away," Kara said firmly. "I'm having a sleepover with my best friend. Go -away-, Mon-El."

Lena just looked at him. She didn't want to say a thing, lest the tide turn.

Mon-El sighed and stalked off.

"Yikes on a full courier fleet of bikes," Lena exhaled as the elevator doors closed behind him.

"He saw the fort behind me and had the -nerve- to ask if he could join me," Kara grumbled as she let Lena through the door. "Blanket forts in the Danvers household are strictly -not- for lying liars who lie."

Lena opened the fridge and snagged a seltzer. "I'll say."

"He also had the -bright- idea of basically -seducing- me inside the fort to make everything better!" Kara slapped the kitchen island, thankfully not hard enough to crack it.

Lena almost choked on her drink. "Excuse me?!"

"That's why we were -talking- in the -hall-," Kara seethed. "Because I let him in and he saw all this and thought it was for -him!-"

"There are not enough yikes in the world," Lena replied, grimacing. -Oh, for the confidence of a mediocre white male.-

"Blanket forts are exclusively for besties, super besties, sisters, and absolutely -no- boys," Kara continued. "No boys, -ever-."

"Then let's quit talking about boys," Lena suggested with a nod.

Kara smiled. "Yeah. You wanna get changed?"

Lena nodded. "These heels, as usual, are less than comfortable after about six hours."

"Why do you wear them?" Kara called after her as she disappeared into the bedroom area.

"Darling, do I need to explain the Earth patriarchy?"

Kara laughed ruefully. "No. No, I guess you don't." She shot the popcorn bag with her heat vision carefully, making it puff up instantly.

Lena came back out with her hair in a low ponytail, wearing yoga pants and Kara's "Power To The Girls" shirt.

"Hey!" Kara laughed. "I thought about wearing that tonight."

"Yeah? Well, you snooze, you lose." Lena grinned.

Kara realized at that second exactly -how- gorgeous Lena looked in her shirt, too baggy for the brunette's body everywhere except her breasts, where it was just tight enough. Her breath caught, and she coughed to hide it. -Stop. Stop being lecherous just because you broke up with your boyfriend. You gross beast, you're no better than he is!-

Lena padded over and patted Kara on the back firmly. "You okay?"

"Saliva down the wrong pipe," Kara coughed.

"Happens to the best of us." Lena kept patting until Kara's coughing calmed down. "At least you didn't choke-spit in the popcorn."

"Ugh, Lena!" Kara laughed, regaining her confidence. "You're awful!"

"I -am- a Luthor," Lena smirked, winking. She picked up her seltzer again. "Ready to hunker down for the evening, then?"

Kara smiled and held out her hand. "Let me hold your drink while you find your post, it's twice as comfy in there now."

Lena picked her way inside the comforting sheet-tent only to nearly collapse in a pile of pillows. "Where did you get all these?!"

"Um." Kara appeared over the edge of the side sheet. "You did say when you gave me the card..."

"Perfect," Lena smiled. "As long as the Superfriends all still have their own pillows on their beds."

"They do!" Kara handed Lena her bottle back and floated in, flopping down on the next closest pile of soft bedding. "Plus I just wanted everything to be as nice as possible. We deserve nice things."

Lena nodded, smiling. "We sure do."

The movie marathon lasted til 3am, with Lena finally texting her assistant that she wasn't feeling well and wouldn't be in til after lunch. Kara giggled and cheered at that, declaring that Lena worked harder than any superhero she knew.

"Thank you for staying with me," Kara whispered as they cuddled up to each other drowsily, Lena's head resting on Kara's collarbone.

"What are friends for?" Lena replied with a yawn.

Once again, they fell asleep on Kara's floor, inside the blanket fort. Lena thought to herself, as she drifted off, that she could definitely learn to like this as a regular occurrence.

\--

"Craaaap," Kara murmured as her phone vibrated far too early the next morning. She reached for her phone, careful not to move too much as about half of Lena was sprawled on top of her like she was a body pillow. She never wanted the feeling to end, honestly.

"What is it?" Lena mumbled, refusing to open her eyes as Kara looked at her phone.

"Oh. The thing with Winn got solved. Wow. Something about his girlfriend and art theft." Kara carefully typed a response with one thumb, since her other arm was slung around Lena's back and she -did not- want to move it for anything. "Gonna check in on him later."

"Later?" Lena nuzzled into Kara's neck, she was just so warm and cozy.

"Yep," Kara murmured, dropping the phone. "I have too much to do this morning."

"What do you have to do?" Lena kept her tone playful, even as she had the sinking feeling that Kara was about to leave.

"I have to be right here," Kara whispered. "Go back to sleep, Lena. I've got you."

"Do you want to, though?"

Lena's lips brushed Kara's neck as she spoke, and the blonde fought to control a delighted shiver. "There's nowhere else I'd rather be right now," she answered truthfully.

"Mmkay," Lena sighed before letting sleep claim her again.

It was 3pm before Lena left and Kara could clean up the fort and herself before heading to the DEO. And if she was honest with herself, she loved every second of their time together. Possibly too much, but she had to go in and help debrief the aliens involved with Lyra and the gang.

\--

He just left.  
You let him in?  
He had to say his piece and I said mine.  
How was that?  
I made him leave. I can't do it anymore. I would rather be alone than deal with being lied to.  
Are you crying, darling? Somehow I feel like you are.  
You know me too well. 🖤  
What do you need? What can I do?  
You did it already. You do it every day.  
I love you, super bestie. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️  
I love you too. ❤️

\--

Hey, we've both been asked to come in.  
I don't have a text from Alex or J'onn?  
No, I said I'd ask. Apparently there's some new technology and a new prisoner? I can come get you.  
I swear you make me fly on purpose.  
Awwww Lenaaaaa  
Shush and come get me, jeez. 🙄

Winn ran up to Kara and Lena as they walked into the rotunda area. "Hey, hey! How you doing, buddy, my buddies?"

"Getting there," was Kara's curt reply.

"Thinking of how I have to rearrange my morning," said Lena with a sideways smile.

"Well, I got a little something to perk you both up." Winn grinned, whistled a bit, and showed a small silver item that looked like either a piece of jewelry or a fidget spinner to Lena. She tilted her head, regarding it with interest. 

"So I just finished running diagnostics on this little beauty. And it, my friend, is in tip top shape. I just gotta say that I'm pretty sure this Cisco fellow and I would just be BFFs if, you know, we lived in the same dimension."

"Yeah, don't tempt me," Kara said, taking the item from him and then handing it to Lena. 

"'Cause I could use an--" Kara's eyes flicked upwards, and both Lena and Winn saw Mon-El sulking on the upper level. "--interdimensional, post-break up vacay."

"Morning, everyone," J'onn said as he walked in. "Now, we have a new prisoner coming in today. He's not our typical guest, so look sharp."

A slightly-built young man with brown curly hair walked in, restrained in souped-up power cuffs and flanked by two DEO agents.

"Ooh, he looks...-fun-," said Winn.

The young man caught sight of Kara. "Ahh, there you are!" 

Kara and Winn looked perplexed, and he pointed at her with a questioning look.

"Uh...uh...who, me?" Kara asked.

"Yes, yes, -you.- Why else do you think I'd -let- myself be caught, come -on-." He leaned back as if to speak to one of the agents guarding him. "She's funny."

Lena had a bad feeling about this, but as usual, she stayed quiet and observed. If something terrible was about to go down, she needed to be able to assess the entire situation and quickly.

"I've been looking for you," the prisoner said to Kara, and then his eyes began to ripple with light.

Kara just stared at him, and after a second her eyes began to ripple too. She took a couple of steps toward him.

Lena knew she looked panicked now. "Supergirl?" she asked, tentatively.

Kara took a deep breath, and she seemed to waver for just a moment.

That was all the prisoner needed to toss his cuffs off, elbow both his guards in the stomach, and walk up to Lena.

"Prisoner, stand down!" Alex ordered as everyone in the room except the aliens and Lena drew their weapons.

"Thank you," the prisoner said cheekily to Lena as he plucked the silver device from her hand.

"Drop your weapon!" Alex ordered.

"Oh, this isn't a weapon," the prisoner said easily. "This is part of my brilliant escape."

He pressed on the device and a portal opened up behind him. "Ladies and gentlemen, this dimension has been so much fun. I've had a blast! But I gotta go chase down the fastest man alive. Toodles!" He took a bow and disappeared, tossing the device in midair.

Winn quickly caught it, breathing a sigh of relief, and Mon-El caught the now unconscious Kara before she hit the ground.

"Supergirl, are you okay?" Alex holstered her weapon and ran over.

"Supergirl?" Lena asked, reaching out to touch her shoulder but stopping herself at the last moment.

"Kara?" Mon-El asked.

"Oh my -god-, what part of -secret identity- is so -hard-, Mon-El?" Alex snapped at him.

"We have to go," J'onn said, walking up to them. "Give me the transmatter portal, Winn."

Winn handed it over. "Sir."

"To Earth-1," J'onn said. "Me, Mon-El, and Lena. The rest of you, stay here and monitor."

Lena frowned at J'onn. She had been prepared to fight to stay with Kara, but here she was, going right alongside them.

J'onn nodded at her in a knowing way before activating the portal again.

All three of them stepped into the swirling silver mass.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And what do YOU think is gonna happen next? ;)


	8. duet

"B.A., someone's coming through," H.R. said, his eyes trained on the portal.

"Could be Gypsy," Cisco said.

"Could be, or it could be..."

They all stared at the portal until three figures appeared, one of them carrying a limp figure in a supersuit they all knew very well.

"Supergirl?" Barry said, surprised. "Kara...What happened to her?"

"We don't know, but whoever did it has come to this world," J'onn said.

\--

"Her vitals are low. How long has she been like this?" Caitlin asked, ever the clinician.

"Not long," Lena replied, doing a bang-up job of keeping her voice steady. "We came as soon as we could."

"Okay, we need to find whoever did this to Kara and punch him repeatedly until he reverses whatever spell he put on her, and I get to punch him first," Mon-El babbled.

"Who are you exactly?" asked Barry.

"My name is Mon-El. I'm...I'm Kara's -friend-."

Lena scoffed inwardly. -Good job, smoothie.-

"Well, more...more than friend."

Everyone remained silent.

"We've been kissing a lot?"

Lena rolled her eyes at that.

"Oh, she never mentioned she had a boyfriend," Caitlin said, side-eyeing him.

"It's a recent thing, so."

J'onn regarded him steadily. "I thought you two broke up."

Mon-El attempted to shush him, which earned another eyeroll from Lena.

"I tell you what, I know enough not to mention the break-up between Barry and uh--"

"H.R." Iris reminded him quietly.

"Sorry." H.R. cleared his throat uncomfortably.

"And you? I don't believe we've met," Barry said, turning to Lena. "I'm Barry Allen."

"I'm Lena Luthor. Contractor to the DEO, and...Kara's friend." Lena lifted her chin. "Best friend."

"Look, hey, whatever's going on between me and Kara, I cannot leave her like this, okay?" Mon-El turned the attention back toward himself. "I need to get her back."

"We will, I promise," said Barry.

"So what happened to her?" Iris asked.

"An alien prisoner escaped our custody," J'onn began. "He did something to her, put her in some kind of a coma."

"And then he disappeared," Mon-El explained. "We tracked him here and followed." 

"Okay, but why would he come to this Earth?" 

"Well, we believe for you," J'onn said.

"Me? Why?" Barry looked puzzled.

"We don't know," Lena put in. "But his last words before he disappeared were about finding the fastest man alive. Which I'm guessing is you, Barry."

"Okay, well, clearly, we're talking about a breacher here," said Cisco. "And if there's one thing I can do, it's find breachers."

"So what else can you tell us about this guy?" Barry asked Lena and J'onn as they walked.

"Not much," J'onn replied.

"It's like he just materialized out of thin air," Lena said.

"You mean like this clown just did?" Cisco pointed at the surveillance footage where what appeared to be a young man in his twenties gave them a cheeky salute.

"I'm gonna go," Barry said instantly before running off.

Everyone stood around for a moment, looking at each other, before J'onn, Lena, and Mon-El went to go sit next to Kara's bed.

\--

Just when Kara thought "Put A Little Love In Your Heart" couldn't get any weirder, Lena twirled in with the rest of the ensemble. She was wearing a swishy green dress that absolutely took Kara's breath away, singing along with Cutter and dancing with him.

She knew Barry was looking around at everyone, but she couldn't take her eyes off Lena. Who never wanted to do karaoke or go to the club, because she claimed she could neither sing nor dance. Yet, there she was, kick-ball-changing and harmonizing as if she were born to it.

And it was the strange man who put her into this dream in the first place who led Lena away as the song was ending, making Kara -incandescent- with rage for some reason she couldn't fathom.

\--

"Guys, we have a problem. Well, another problem."

Everyone looked at Caitlin with "oh fuck, what now" looks on their faces.

"The Speed Force levels in Barry's cells have been severely depleted, as has the amount of solar radiation in Kara's body."

"What exactly does that mean?" J'onn asked.

"They're being drained. The guy who did this to them? I think he's stealing their powers."

"Power up," Music Meister smirked as he used Kara's heat vision to melt a bank door.

\--

"We gotta bring him in."

"No, not we. Me. I'm the reason Barry got whammied," Wally argued.

"We win and we lose as a team," Cisco reminded him.

"I'm coming with you," Wally insisted.

"I'm coming too," J'onn interrupted.

"Look, J'onn, uh, I respect this whole special agent situation you got going on," Cisco argued, "but this problem right here needs someone with..."

His eyes grew huge as J'onn shapeshifted into his normal Martian form. Iris was clearly impressed.

"...green skin and a sick-ass cape," Cisco finished.

"Call me the Martian Manhunter," J'onn said.

"I think you'll find that J'onn's a lot more than just a pretty face," Mon-El said, smirking.

"Guys!" Lena shouted from the door. Peacocking was peacocking, and they didn't have time for it. "Barry and Kara's vitals are all over the place."

"Let's go," said Wally.

They opened the portal a second later and vanished through it.

"...is that normal?" Caitlin asked Lena, having joined her in the doorway. "The...manhunter and the giant walking ego?"

"Welcome to Tuesday on Earth-38," Lena replied with a shrug.

"Hey, give us a hand in here?" Iris called.

\--

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the trio I was hoping would visit me the most."

"Fix them. Now." Iris demanded.

"I'm sorry. I can't."

"If you ever want to get out of that cell, that's exactly what you're gonna do." Mon-El threatened calmly.

"You don't get it." Meister chuckled. "You don't understand, big guy. That's just not how it works. My powers don't work that way."

"What do you mean? You're the one who did this to them!" Lena frowned as she spoke.

"Yes, but they are the only ones that are in control of what happens to them now, as are the three of you."

"Us? What does that mean?" Iris's frown matched Lena's.

"How much do you love him, Iris? And you, Mon-El, how much do you love her? And you, -Lena-. Kara's your best -friend-, isn't she? So the question is: is that strong enough to save them? You want Kara and Barry back from the world they're in, you can go get them yourselves. You have that power."

"How?" Iris, Mon-El, and Lena asked simultaneously.

"Ah, I can't tell you. Sorry, you gotta figure it out yourself. Now, if you don't mind, I'm gonna just chill in this wonderfully decorated little cell of yours." Meister dramatically sat down on his chair.

Mon-El scoffed angrily and turned on his heel to leave, followed by Iris.

"Bye, guys! Good luck," Meister called.

Lena stared him down once Iris and Mon-El had walked down the hall.

"And you. You, Lena Luthor." Meister chuckled again. "Boy, are -you- screwed."

"Shut up," Lena snapped.

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone the truth." He kicked his feet up on the table. "That's -your- personal hell."

"Screw -you-," Lena spat, turning away sharply to leave.

"What I don't understand is, why are you so -terrified- of Kara finding out you're in love with her? Surely she wouldn't dump you as a -super bestie- just for a lil ole crush."

"Shut. The fuck. -Up!-" Lena snarled, turning around to face him and snatching him up by his collar.

Meister laughed in her face. "You never know. She might just like you -back-."

Lena shoved him back onto his seat. "I'm done with you." She turned sharply on her heel and walked away from him for good.

"Love will find a way. You can do it. Power of love and all that!"

His mocking laughter followed her all the way back to the lab.

\--

"What's wrong?" Lena cried as she came back in to see Barry and Kara's vitals spiked to inhuman levels while everyone crowded around them.

"I think we're losing them," Caitlin said, as calmly as she could manage.

J'onn laid his hands on Kara's leg. "Can you stop it?"

"Not if I don't know why!" Caitlin snapped.

"What are we gonna do?" Wally asked, knowing that no one had the answer anyway.

Iris was the one to realize it. "We need to go to whatever world they're in." 

"-How- are we gonna do that?" H.R. asked.

Iris held Mon-El's gaze for a long second. "Look. He said, if we loved them enough that we could save them, wherever they are. Cisco, you can vibe us there."

Mon-El nodded, desperate. 

"I don't think it works that way," Cisco protested. 

"You sent me into the Speed Force. You sent Barry and Wally into the future. You can do this too!" Iris argued right back.

"What is she talking about?" J'onn tried to keep his voice calm.

"What's a vibe?" Mon-El asked, confused.

"I'll explain later," Cisco said quickly as he put on his glasses. "Come on, just grab on to my shoulders, all three of you. Let's hope this works."

Kara felt the life bleeding out of her. She was going to die, and she couldn't stop shaking. "Barry...Barry?" she called, desperate to not be alone. She couldn't save him. She couldn't save herself.

"Kara," Barry breathed, all he could manage anymore. He couldn't save Kara. He was going to die, and there was nothing he could do about it. 

"Barry!" Iris screamed as she saw the two bleeding bodies, and ran to her love, kneeling down beside him.

"Kara!" Mon-El was steps behind Iris, throwing himself to his knees next to the blonde.

Lena sank down on Kara's other side, immediately cradling her head gently. "Kara..."

Kara blinked, she couldn't believe her eyes. "Lena? Mon... Mon-El?"

"Yes, darling, it's us." Lena fought back tears. "Hold on, -please-!"

"Oh, no," Iris whispered desperately. "No. Hey, it's me. It's Iris, I'm here. Hi." She cupped his face gently in her hands.

"Stay with us, we're gonna get you out," Mon-El said quickly.

"There's no time," Kara protested. She knew she was seconds away from bleeding out.

"We have to go. We have to get them out!" Lena cried desperately as she felt Kara slipping away.

"Come on, Barry," Iris begged even as she felt him fading. "Barry! No!"

"I'm so sorry I lied to you," Mon-El said to Kara.

"I forgive you," Kara whispered back, her attempt at smiling turning into a clench of teeth and grimace against the death that was coming for her, just a few more short breaths away.

Barry looked up at Iris tenderly. "I love you." His body went slack.

"No, Barry, Barry, you're gonna be okay!" Iris shook him a little as she realized it was too late. "No! ...I love you."

Barry's body relaxed as Iris kissed him, clearly breaking the spell.

Mon-El saw it, saw Barry's vitals go back to normal, and he kissed Kara as well. "I love you!" he cried.

Nothing happened, except Lena and Mon-El faded back out into the lab with everyone else and Kara was now dangerously close to flatlining.

"Why isn't it working?!" Mon-El cried as he tried kissing Kara again. "I love you, Kara, I love you!"

J'onn's gaze suddenly burned twin holes into Lena. She glared back at him with panic clear in her eyes. -So you know.-

His nod was barely imperceptible.

Lena pushed Mon-El aside. "Say anything to her and I will have all of you killed," she snarled. "-You- did this, do you hear me," she snapped at Mon-El.

Then she leaned over, ghosting Kara's lips with hers. "I love you," she breathed, kissing her gently.

Kara's body immediately stilled and Lena fled, standing behind J'onn as a shield.

"Iris..." Barry whispered as he came to.

"Mon-El?" Kara rasped as she saw him standing over her with a worried expression.

"They're back!" H.R. cried happily.

Kara began to sit up and take off all the monitors and oxygen, just as Barry was doing. She was back, she was safe, but something felt very -wrong-. As if Mon-El shouldn't be the one standing over her. But he had saved her with a kiss, that much was obvious.

"Bravo! Round of applause! Standing O. That was so good! I loved it. That was a hell of a show." Music Meister walked in, chattering away.

"And you two. I guess your love really was strong enough after all," he said sardonically, gesturing at Mon-El and Kara.

Everyone just stared at him.

"Beautiful," Meister said, gesturing at Barry and Iris.

"Man, how did you get out of the cell?!" Cisco was beside himself.

"Cisco, do you really think that cell is gonna just, like, hold me?"

"No, I'm sorry, what's going on?" Barry was trying not to let his surprise morph into rage. "Why did you do this to us?"

"I did it because I believe in the good guys. I told you when we first met. It was to teach all of you a lesson. 'Cause I see everything, and I saw people with broken hearts."

"So, the lesson was...?" Kara didn't get it, but maybe she was just slow on the uptake after almost dying.

"Love, Supergirl. Love is about letting yourself be saved. It's not just about saving other people. Even if you are superheroes." Meister shot Lena a look, and she pretended not to see it.

"Anyway, I'm sorry that I had to, like, mess with you a little bit. I was just trying to get you to play the game, do the song and dance." He punctuated this with a little dance and finger-snapping.

"Are you, like, from another...Earth-multi-verse universe, something?" H.R. managed to stammer.

Meister's sigh was more of a horse noise. "Yeah, you wouldn't even understand where I come from." He began to walk off.

"Wait, I'm sorry, that's it? You're just gonna teach somebody else a lesson?" Barry stared after him.

"Yeah, that's exactly what I'm gonna do." Meister snapped his fingers and made finger guns at the group before turning away.

Lena wanted to -murder- the meddling little trickster on the spot. He'd forced her to show most of her emotional cards to just about everyone in the room, -and- she'd had to threaten them all to keep her secret.

Meister began to sing as he vanished into thin air. "Think of your fellow man, lend him a helping hand...put a little love in your heart..."

Lena wanted to head out back and stab herself repeatedly in the guts as she saw Kara's happy, dreamy expression directed at Mon-El. Maybe if she found this blasted trickster imp elsewhere, she could convince him to trap her forever so she wouldn't have to see this.

J'onn's hand on her elbow seemed a poor attempt at pity, so she kept a strict poker face, even smiling at the happy couple.

\--

"Wait, so, let me get this straight," Joe said, laughing a little. "You got whammied by some guy named..."

"Music Meister," Barry admitted, shifting from foot to foot.

Joe laughed. "Damn, Barry, I'd have paid good money to see you singing and dancing."

"No," Barry replied, chuckling.

"Well, he's holding out on you because Barry has an -amazing- voice," Kara called out. 

"He does!" Caitlin confirmed.

"Uh-uh." Barry wasn't having it.

"I've actually seen him sing," Caitlin said, smirking.

"What? You have? How have we not made a GIF of that?" asked Cisco.

"Well, technically, I'm not even the only one here who can sing," Barry said, looking at Kara with a smile.

"Thank you, B.A." H.R. replied.

"What? I was talking about Kara." 

"Wait, shhhhi-oh, you too?" H.R. asked looking over at her. 

"Kara. Of -course- Kara can sing," Cisco replied.

"Well, her name is Supergirl. It's kind of implied, right?"

Everyone chuckled at Iris's remark.

"Well, we better be getting going. I promised Kara's sister we'd get her back in one piece," J'onn said, shaking Barry's hand. "We couldn't have done this without you. Thank you."

"Thank -you-," Barry replied before turning to Mon-El and Kara. "How are you guys doing?"

"Yeah, I think we'll be okay," Kara told him confidently.

She turned to Mon-El. "Although, if you lie to me again, I -will- drop a mountain on you."

"Wow." Mon-El looked flabbergasted, and for a moment, Lena almost felt sorry for him.

"You mean, figuratively?" he asked.

"No, I mean, geologically," Kara shot back in all seriousness.

"Okay," he answered promptly, a nervous chuckle escaping him as she kissed him.

"What about you guys?" Kara asked Barry.

"We'll see," Barry replied, trying not to have his own nervous chuckle.

"Lena," J'onn began, as quietly as he could once Kara and Mon-El had vanished back through the portal, hand in hand.

"-No-," Lena snapped, holding up her hand to silence him.

"But..."

"I meant what I said, -Martian-," Lena replied in a venom-laden tone. "You will say -nothing-."

J'onn sighed. He was the fatherly type, and Lena was his newest child, prickly and guarded though she was. He just wanted her to be happy. With Kara, because he could read Kara's thoughts as well as Lena's, and he knew the feeling was very, very mutual. But he couldn't figure out a way to bypass the trainwreck unfolding in front of them all.

-Not yet, anyway,- he thought sourly as they vanished back to Earth-38.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there's the twist that I really hope you all saw coming. Don't hate me! The Lena in my head is just not capable of declaring herself yet. She's all mixed up, and the only guy who ever loved her is about to pop back up (which will turn a pair of blue eyes super, super green). We got a little more pining on both sides to go.  
Look. I know I keep promising things. But don't you want a big beautiful explosion of a big ole ship and of feelings and friend-zoning and and and? ❤️


	9. distant sun

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am publishing this episode now because I have a lot of things in the rest of the season to completely rewrite and while I am working busily on it, it's not as easy as cutting and pasting Lena into scenes.
> 
> I notice I'm kind of erasing James, especially in this episode. 🤷 sorrynotsorry.gif

Miss Luthor, a Mr. Henshaw is on line four."

Lena picked up her desk phone and pressed the correct line. "What can I do for you, Director?" she asked coolly.

Now that Lena knew J'onn could not only read her mind, but he knew the truth about how she felt about her best friend, their behaviour around one another had become very formal and stilted. Lena had actually skipped Game Night the previous week because not only could she not stand being in the same room as the Martian Manhunter, but the PDA between Kara and Mon-El was at an all-time high of disgusting and J'onn knew how she felt about it too.

"Without going into too much detail, I need you to call Kara and convince her to stay with you for the next 24 hours."

Lena scoffed. "And what am I supposed to tell her?"

"She knows why and she'll tell you when she gets to you. But I need you to be the one she stays with."

"Why is that?"

"You're the safest in this situation."

I'm grounded.  
What?  
I'm coming to you. Walking. So it'll be a few minutes.

"Fine," she told J'onn. "Talk to you later."

Kara, I can send a car for you.  
Actually  
Could you?  
Go stand at the bodega on the corner. Two minutes. Driver is Joel and he will ask for Miss Danvers.  
Thank you ❤️

"Did you see Spiky Cyclops on the news today?" Kara grumbled as she flounced in and flopped on the white couch.

"I did, that looked like such -fun-, too." Lena got up from her desk and went to sit next to Kara. "J'onn called and asked if I'd keep you for the next 24 hours. And he said you'd tell me why when you got here."

Kara sighed, but it came out as an angry groan. "Cyclops was a bounty hunter. Someone has set a stupid intergalactic bounty on my head. Well, Supergirl's head. So I can't fly, I can't go save people, I can't do -anything-. So I asked J'onn if I could come stay with you, and he said that would be an even better idea than going home." Kara sat up. "Oh no. I just realized that I have totally invited myself over and imposed like a jerk!"

Lena shook her head. "He called before you texted, dear. And I'll do anything to keep my super bestie safe. Even if that means revealing my top secret residence." She winked at Kara. "So. Do you want to stay in here with me since my meetings for the rest of the day are all remote, or do you wanna go somewhere else in the building and chill?"

Kara pondered that thought.

"You know, there's a conference room on this floor with a TV and everything. And next to it is a break room with some cool vending machines." Lena smiled. "We're working on some different food preservation technologies so you'd be doing me a favour by testing them out."

Kara grinned. "Ah, food! You know the way to my heart, even if I do feel like it's Take Your Kid To Work Day."

Lena laughed. "Look, I'm going to give you a tap-to-pay card and a tablet to record what you buy and how the whole experience was including the payment process. This is bug testing and I pay all my testers. Quick gig?"

Kara giggled. "You are one determined woman, Lena."

Lena smiled and went to open the door. "Jess?" she called.

Jess trotted in. "Yes, Miss Luthor?"

"Set Miss Danvers up with a testing slot and equipment for the vending machines on this floor. Is the smaller conference room free til the end of the day?"

Jess nodded. "It is."

"Okay, block it off for me then, and let Miss Danvers do her reports in there."

"You'll need to fill out a 1099 form since our bug testers are contractors," Jess said to Kara as they walked out together. "It's easy and I can do most of it for you."

Kara grinned over her shoulder at Lena as they left.

Lena raised her eyebrows and pointed at the phone in her hand, mouthing "text me" at Kara.

\--

She is chafing at the bit. Can I take her back home tonight rather than to my place? A little bit of normalcy.  
Yes. Thank you for looking after her.  
I'm interested in the noodle bowl vending machine. Earth technology?  
You wound me, Director. My engineers are more than capable of simple carbohydrate heating technology.  
I was curious about the flavour enhancements, particularly since some are not traditional Earth spice profiles. Kara has sent me eight or so photos of her choices.  
Kara's bug testing for me. If she's only eaten eight, she has six more combinations to try, and I think she will be my most thorough vending tester to date.  
And yes, I know it must infuriate my brother that aliens will be able to get food 24/7 courtesy of repurposed Luthor xenophobic technology.  
That's why I do it.  
Thanks, Lena. Truly.  
I know. You're welcome.

dcim4763.jpg

Lena laughed as a selfie of Kara with a surprised expression slurping tonkatsu ramen popped up on her screen.

Having fun?  
It's amazing!! 🍜😍  
Any feedback for us?  
It's almost exactly like what you can get on the street in Japan! The broth's a little cooler, though. Maybe the bowl could be enhanced?  
We're trying to make the bowls compostable and 100% biodegradable within one month by making them out of various hypoallergenic plant fibers and that can limit the temperature range. But make sure you put that down so the engineers can keep working on it.  
WHY ARE YOU SO SMART LENA  
YOU THINK OF EVERYTHING  
Genetics, I'm told. Evil is very creative.  
😠 You are a creative force for good and I love you for it!  
😇

By the time Lena closed her office for the evening, Kara had finished testing the noodles, tested and retested the ice cream, written in-depth reviews of all the sandwiches as well as submitted ideas for the empty spaces, and tried every single flavour combination of soft drink she could punch in on the "Soda Jerk" machine.

"How often do you have bug testing?" Kara asked as they headed into the elevator.

"Every day, and there are different machines on other floors. Plus, I noticed you didn't try the salad maker," Lena grinned.

"I have my limits." Kara stuck her tongue out.

\--

"I hate this!" Kara exclaimed as she thumped the table.

"What, the game?" Lena asked.

"No! I love this game. I hate...I hate being stuck inside." Kara gestured at her TV. "Look, look. I could be there and back so fast."

"No, -no,-" Winn said quickly. "J'onn said you can't go anywhere as Supergirl."

Lena sighed. "Should have never let you watch the news."

"I will be back before I miss my turn!" Kara argued.

"No." Lena studied the board and made her next move.

"National City needs Supergirl!" Kara whined.

Mon-El let himself in a minute later.

"Mon-El, I'm very happy you're here. And not just because you have super strength. Now maybe you can stand in the way of her and her super suit," Lena said smoothly. She wasn't lying. The man did have his uses.

"Yeah," Mon-El replied dully as he walked up to the table they were all sitting around.

"Where were you?" Kara asked.

"I was just questioning some suspects."

"Who?"

"My parents."

"So you think your parents ordered the bounty on me?" Kara was incredulous.

"Well, they say they didn't, but I'm not so sure." Mon-El headed to the fridge to get a beer.

"They should meet my dad. I bet they'd become fast friends," Winn replied, sarcastically.

"Yeah, from what you've said about it, I'm sure that's true."

Lena wondered what exactly had happened when Mon-El met his parents, because she'd never seen him so muted, so dull before.

And then, Mon-El dropped the full beer on the floor, glass breaking and flying everywhere.

"Oh, shoot," he said, frowning and bending down to see if he could pick up any glass. "I'm sorry, I don't know what happened."

Lena's phone began to vibrate with a specific pattern, and she glanced down at it. -Alien psychic disturbance? What?-

Seeing that he wasn't straightening up, Kara gave a nervous chuckle. "Are you okay?"

Mon-El looked up at her, teal swirling in his eyes momentarily. "I can't move."

Lena stood up, pulling a slim, oval device out of her purse and pointing it at Mon-El.

"What's that?" Winn asked Lena softly.

"Someone with psychic disruption abilities is trying to mess with him. This should pinpoint what type," Lena replied at the same volume.

"No. Seriously."

Everyone watched Mon-El try to fight the psychic invader off. Lena gritted her teeth. -Come on, send another wave, you coward.-

Mon-El launched himself forward "Whoa! Watch out!" He body-slammed Kara through her own window, the blonde screaming as they flew through the air.

Winn's pocket started to chirp, and he pulled out a strange button-like device. "Whoa, whoa. It's working!"

"What's working?" Lena looked over. 

"Okay, so this is a messenger thing all the bounty hunters are carrying to locate Kara. I reconfigured it to go off if there's another messaging device nearby. Which means there is a bounty hunter and he is -close-."

"-Nice!-" Lena replied, admiring the button.

Winn smiled at her. "You think so?"

"Looks like something I would do," Lena said.

"That's awesome." Winn grinned.

Lena's smartwatch buzzed and she looked at it. "Oh, shit."

"What?" Winn frowned.

"The bounty hunter is using Alcorian telepathy." Lena shoved the device and her phone into her slacks pocket. "Let's go."

"What can we do?" Winn asked hurriedly.

"Break the telepath's concentration. Somehow." Lena dug in her purse.

"How do we do that?" Winn figured that Lena would have any situation much more under control than he ever could.

"We find the telepath. They have to be close in order to control someone like this. Within about a block. Do you have a gun?" Lena turned to look at Winn.

"No! ...Do you?"

"Find something," Lena ordered as she pulled her pistol out of her purse and chambered a round. "I'll go to the left out of the building door, you go right." She left Winn standing there, gaping at the fact that Lena Luthor had just pulled a firearm out of her handbag like it was a pair of sunglasses.

As Mon-El and Kara fought, Lena ran through the streets looking for the telepath. Her device would alert her if the telepath's signal got stronger, but it didn't buzz her watch, so she doubled back in time to see Mon-El throw Kara into a car while apologizing profusely.

-I wish I could help you,- Lena cried inside as she saw Kara struggling to get back up. -This is why you need him.-

Her watch buzzed as Mon-El seemed to grit his teeth and clench his fists.

"I don't think I can fight it," he said as his arm wound up for a lethal punch.

"Wait," Kara begged, but to no avail as he tried to hit her and hit the car twice instead.

"Let him go," said Winn, sticking his "weapon" into the spine of the telepath, "or, or the sidewalk...gets a new paint job."

Lena, from the other side of the building, watched as Kara gave Mon-El a superpowered punch, and hid her grin as he insisted it was him again.

\--

"So, Creepy McGee here got inside Mon-El's brain and thought he could use him to kill Supergirl," said Winn, as everyone stared the newest prisoner down in his holding cell.

"Rude," Mon-El said.

"Who put the bounty out on me?" Kara asked.

"He knows. You can tell he knows," Alex growled.

"I'm the most powerful telepath in the Alcorian system. I know more than you can imagine," the prisoner scoffed.

"Oh, yeah, except for the difference between a gun and a stapler," Winn scoffed, looking at Lena who smirked back at him.

"Don't flatter yourself," Lena sniped at the telepath. "You didn't even get into the yellow range on my psychic disruption scanner. I'd say you come in on less than Martian-level on the brainwave scale."

"You'll never get me to talk," the bounty hunter sneered. "You humans are too moral to do what's necessary to penetrate my mind."

"Winn, get me a wrench," Alex ordered.

"Oh yeah," Winn said happily.

"Alex! Stand down." J'onn came striding in, and as everyone watched, he began to attempt to penetrate the prisoner's mind.

The telepath smirked. "Come at me, bro."

Lena was very glad she'd left her scanner outside the holding facility, because the battle of psychic wills unfolding before them would have most likely fried it. She wondered, briefly, if J'onn would ever consent to measurement of his power so that she could upgrade what she had to accommodate a much higher level of disruption/penetration.

Finally, the Alcorian crumbled, screaming "it was the Daxamites! Queen Rhea placed the bounty!"

Everyone just stared at him with pity for a long moment before filing out to return back to the rotunda.

"You know, for a second there, I actually almost believed them," Mon-El groused as they walked. "I mean, you're not safe." 

"We'll figure this out," Kara assured him.

"I mean, how? I know them. In their minds, they honestly believe that if they get rid of you, then I'm just going to go back home." 

"We need to retaliate." 

"I mean, if we strike back, we could force them to pull the bounty and leave Earth," Alex said. 

"Uh, listen, I like revenge just as much as the next geek but need I remind you that they have an impenetrable warship?" Winn said.

"Well, Winn, you can find a way in if anyone can," Lena replied.

"No, he can't," J'onn said, immediately.

"I mean, I might be able to," Winn said.

"We can't take any action against the Daxamite ship whatsoever. I have orders from President Marsdin." J'onn turned to look at all of them.

"What?" Alex couldn't believe her ears.

"Attacking them could spark an intergalactic war."

"-They- attacked -us-!" Alex argued.

"I'll brief the President and wait for her instructions. Until then, our only mission is to keep Supergirl safe."

\--

I love him, but sometimes his ideas are dumb.  
Let's have it.  
He started reading Romeo and Juliet, so he thinks we should run away to a distant planet together and be happy.  
He hasn't finished the play, has he.  
Noooope 🤐🤐🤐  
I'd never go, though.  
Why not? You could be safe.  
I couldn't leave National City, let alone Earth. I couldn't leave the DEO. How could I leave Alex?  
Good points, all.  
I could never, ever leave you.  
Really?  
The second it hit me that if we ran away I'd have to leave you, I almost threw up. I'd be sick if I ever had to leave you behind anywhere 😖  
I'll admit I was nauseated just a minute ago, too.  
I will never leave you. That's a promise.  
Likewise. Also a promise.  
Is he staying over?  
Yes. But  
But?  
Don't tell anyone  
Okay?  
I have been feeling off since Music Meister and Earth-1. He's here but he's sleeping on the couch. Sometimes I want to be with him forever but other times...  
I don't know. Is it weird?  
I've only had a few relationships myself, I couldn't tell you.  
Tonight I just feel wrong. Maybe it was getting body-slammed into a roof and sucker punched into a car.  
Don't overthink it. You're allowed to want the bed to yourself.

-I...I want a blanket fort,- Kara thought miserably to herself. -With you.-

"Give me a sign, Kara," Lena whispered to her phone. "Please, darling."

We are going to talk to his parents tomorrow.  
Hope his goes more smoothly than mine.  
We're conducting it in the Fortress, so it will be chill.  
Literally.  
Since it's made of ❄️?  
Good night, Kara.  
Aw  
Good night, Lena. Love you.  
❤️

\--

Report to the DEO, please.  
It's Kara.  
Right away

"Kara!" Lena cried as the blonde dragged herself through the rotunda, limping and dirty.

Kara sighed with relief as Lena's arms folded around her, guiding her to sit on a small bench.

"What happened?" Lena asked worriedly.

"Where is she?!" Alex demanded, striding in.

Kara gave a weak wave to Alex, who almost ran over.

"What did she do to you?!" Alex cried.

"She had kryptonite," Kara sighed.

"We need to get you under a yellow sun lamp," Lena said.

"No. Rhea was about to kill me, and Mon-El sacrificed everything to save my life. Now we have to save his!" Kara pled.

"I can't let you do that," J'onn said.

"No, I'm okay," Kara insisted.

"It's not that. We're under strict orders not to engage. I'm sorry." 

"This is Mon-El's life. Please," Kara begged.

"I cannot disobey the President of the United States," J'onn continued. I know it's easy to let emotions get involved, but there's a protocol. I'm not the one calling the shots right now."

"I know how much you care for Mon-El. But this is too dangerous," Alex said.

"I have to save him. I know you understand. Once that ship leaves he's gone forever."

"He's made his choice. He's with his people, Kara," J'onn pressed.

"Mon-El did not choose this. This is not like M'gann. And if we wait for President's orders, Mon-El and his parents could be light-years away. We have to go now. I'm the one that convinced him to do this. To try to reason with his mother. He's up there because of me. Please. J'onn, I can't lose him."

Lena closed her eyes painfully. That note in Kara's voice...the one that meant -love-, even though she didn't say it. -That- was why Lena kept her secret. Mon-El had gotten there first, that was all there was to it. And being Kara's best friend was still worth it. There were many different types of love, Lena reminded herself.

"I think there's a way," Winn said.

Kara clutched at Lena's arms as she looked up at Winn. "A way to what?"

"A way to get onto that ship and pull him out." Winn nodded. "But I'm gonna need Lena's help."

Lena opened her eyes. "Huh?"

"Give us a few minutes," Winn replied before seizing Lena's hand and just about dragging her off.

\--

With Winn and Lena working together, the portal used to get to Slaver's Moon was repurposed easily. Lena kept the portal stable with her flawless calculations, and although the end result was entirely too dramatic, she was happy that Mon-El had been successfully retrieved. The more she thought about it, the more inured she became to the idea that Kara and Mon-El were each other's ideal choices. She was learning to make her peace with the fratboy from Daxam. She still had Kara's love, and even if it wasn't romantic or sexual, it was still fulfilling in its own way. She could do this. She could.

\--

"Lena," said Mon-El as she doubtfully allowed him into the office. "I can't do it anymore."

"Can't do what?" Lena raised an eyebrow.

"I can't keep lying!" Mon-El scowled. "Maybe the old me could, but every time I look at Kara now I just remember how -you- brought her back and not me. And it makes me sick when she looks at me like I'm her everything."

"Do you also remember what I said?" Lena's tone was icy.

"I kind of don't care. My parents are determined to kidnap me anyway, we know that." Mon-El paced a bit. "And it's not fair to keep dating Kara with all of this stress. Not when she could have -you- instead."

"Look, Mon-El. I know you're new to the planet. But in case no one told you, my brother tried to kill her cousin. To the point of turning Metropolis's sun red and killing innocent civilians. While he forced me to -watch-." Lena's voice cracked. "I'd never forgive myself if something happened to her because she was with me."

"Her entire -planet- hates my planet and yet we've been making it work!" Mon-El frowned.

"Your planets are gone! Living here means you don't have to face that. -We- would face it. We'd be the subject of every headline for the rest of our lives."

"But is that really so bad in the face of true love?" Mon-El was baiting her now, and she knew it. "I think it's worth it. Why don't you?"

"Do not question me!" Lena roared suddenly. "Everything I do has a reason!"

"What reason? That you're scared to love or something?" Mon-El advanced on her and stared her down. "I love Kara. I want her to be -happy-. What the hell is wrong with you that you -don't-?"

"Get out," Lena hissed. "Get the -fuck- out."

"Fine!" Mon-El turned to go. "Do what you want. Maybe you're just like this brother of yours after all, you just want to -hurt- the ones you love."

He stormed out before she could answer, slamming the door.

Lena buried her face in her hands. "Fuck..." she whispered. "Fuck."

\--

"Oh, hey Mon-El," Kara said distractedly as he walked into her apartment.

"Can I talk to you?" he asked gently.

"Sure. Always." She looked up from her laptop.

"I've been thinking."

"A dangerous pasttime," Kara quipped.

"Look. You know I love you." Mon-El took her hand. "I do, I really do. But things have changed between us since Music Meister whammied you. And I can't say it's changed in a bad way."

Kara nodded. She had an idea of what was coming.

"I love working with you. I love being around you." Mon-El sighed. "But I don't think we're suited as mates. Um--boyfriend and girlfriend, I mean."

Kara nodded slowly. "Honestly? Yeah. I think you're right."

She sighed, and Mon-El squeezed her hand comfortingly.

"So. Friends?" Kara asked softly.

"Friends. Coworkers. Heroes." Mon-El nodded.

Kara gave a small smile. "I like that."

"Do me one favour, though?" Mon-El asked.

"Anything."

"Don't tell Lena we broke up. Not yet."

Kara frowned. "But she's my best friend. I tell her everything."

Mon-El fudged the truth a bit. "We actually were just in a screaming match over in her office. If she knows I just broke it off with you, she might be the one to drop the mountain on me for hurting you."

Kara sighed. "Yeah, she's like that. But when do I get to tell her?"

"I don't know," Mon-El replied. "But at least not for a few days? Until we've both cooled down."

Kara nodded slowly. She could see the sense in it, even if it felt -wrong-.

"Okay. I'm gonna go beat up some sandbags at the DEO now," he said. "I'm still itchy over the fight with her, and I probably shouldn't be trusted around actual criminal suspects." He squeezed her hand again and then let go.

As he turned to walk away, Kara pulled him into a hug.

"Promise me that we're still friends?" she whispered into his ear.

He nodded. "Superfriends forever, I promise."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's a wrap on the ship that no one likes. Mon-El and his freshly-grown spine are remaining til the end of the season, but he's now a Superfriend and happy to stay in his new lane. I hope you'll enjoy version 2.0.


	10. ace reporter

"Why aren't you answering your phone?" Lena asked as she let herself in using the key Kara had given her weeks before. "Are you -grief-baking-?!"

"No," Kara said, trying unsuccessfully to hide the evidence. 

Lena looked at her and scoffed before tossing her purse down and taking a seat at the kitchen island. "Liar."

"Being unemployed is not fun anymore," Kara whined. "Wait, is everything okay?"

"Yeah...no. Absolutely, uh..." Lena couldn't find the words.

Kara quirked a brow. Lena, Lena -Luthor- the fearless, flawless CEO, -stammering-?!

"So, today there is this press conference for Spheerical Industries' new unveiling," Lena tried to explain, gazing off into the distance. "Whatever they announce is gonna be the next big thing that everyone wants."

"Are they your competition?" Kara tilted her head.

"No, um..." Lena still couldn't make eye contact until Kara sat down across from her. "Their CEO, Jack Spheer and I, we...we used to be close."

"Until when?" Kara asked gently, figuring she knew what "close" meant.

"Just before I moved to National City."

"Oh, I see. So this...this is a -recent- closeness." Kara suddenly had a -very- funny feeling in the pit of her stomach, but she ignored it in favour of a supportive smile. "How long were you two together?"

"Romantically, two years," Lena admitted with a shy smile. "But we had a start-up together for five. Worked out of a garage trying to find a cure for cancer."

She laughed softly as she said it, and Kara was astonished at the wave of emotion that suddenly broke over her. -She- wanted to be the reason for -that- sweet smile on Lena's face.

"It was a lot of small explosions and good times," Lena continued, still chuckling before her expression changed to worry. "He's given me a personal invite to this press conference and it's in an hour. I've been trying to reach you for two!"

"Are you gonna go?" Kara regained her equilibrium.

"Jack's my kryptonite." Lena shrugged, and Kara felt another emotional flare like someone had just pulled out a hunk of said rock. "But it's just gonna bring up a lot of painful things, and I'm not sure I can deal with that possible intensity." She looked up at Kara hopefully.

Kara nodded. She'd do anything for Lena. So she stood up. "But if your super bestie Kara came with you..." She backed toward the door.

"And had my back..." Lena picked up the sentence and her purse.

"...it won't be so hard to face him!" Kara finished as she got her coat and opened the door. 

"Thank you," Lena replied happily.

"Oh, this is so much better than grief-baking. And I always have your back," Kara smiled as she ushered Lena out.

"You're my favourite," Lena giggled.

Kara closed and locked the door behind them. "And wait, this ex-guy of yours hurts and weakens you to the point you pass out? And you -want- to see him?"

"Oh, Kara, don't be silly. Everyone says that about people they're just plain weak around."

"Some days I dislike the media industry," Kara grumbled as they headed out.

\--

"Lena. I'm so glad you came," Jack called, running up behind Kara and Lena as they made their way out of the auditorium.

Jack's warm voice and sweet demeanour disarmed Lena instantly, and she was a -goner- when they turned around and she saw his caring, handsome face.

"Yeah, I wouldn't miss it for the world," she replied, letting herself be folded into his hug, even -giggling- a bit, much to her dismay.

Jack noticed the blonde standing next to his one who got away. "You grilled me," he said, chuckling.

"I did." Kara inclined her head and smiled.

"Oh, this is Kara Danvers. She is one of the best reporters in National City."

Kara was pretty sure she could fly around for an entire day off the power of Lena's smile. "Oh, stop!" She began laughing nervously.

It went on just a moment too long, and then her childhood anxiety at being different and doing things wrong reared its ugly head. "I should go," she said quickly.

"Do you have to?" Lena asked.

Kara wasn't sure how she was feeling, but she knew she needed to get away before she ended up shrieking like Xena and flying away with Lena tossed over her shoulder. "Actually, yeah, I...I have to tell the readers about the next medical breakthrough."

"O...okay," Lena replied. -You aren't supposed to leave me, Kara!-

Kara shuffled off as quickly as she could, glancing back only once to see Lena directing that megawatt, genuine smile at Jack, and feeling something like a knife twist in her guts. -What is WRONG with you, Zor-El?!-

Then, an unassuming bearded man in khakis fell into step with her. "Kara Danvers, right?"

"Do I know you?" Kara frowned at him.

"I know Jack Spheer. I have some information for you," said the man, his serious tone giving Kara pause. "Meet me in the parking lot at 4th and Main tonight. You're the only reporter I can trust."

"So tell me, the nano swarm. How'd you finally crack it?" Lena asked Jack with enthusiasm, ever the science nerd.

"I'll tell you at dinner," Jack said, smiling.

Lena gave him a knowing look. 

"Come on. It's been so long," he pleaded with -that- smile on his face, the one that never failed to make Lena tingle with warmth. "I'd love to catch up."

"Jack," called his CFO before walking over, "excuse me. You should really spend some time with the shareholders for a while." She fixed him with a no-nonsense look.

"Oh, uh..." Jack was clearly at a loss, and it was obvious he didn't want to leave Lena. So she made the decision for him. 

"I should let you do that," she said, backing away with a chuckle. "It has been great to see you."

She walked away before the warring emotions in her heart and stomach threatened to strangle her. Jack was so right, he was...but something in the way he moved, or blinked, or -something- that Lena couldn't put her finger on, was -wrong-.

Did you leave already?  
Yes 🍃  
Come back, he had to go

Kara trotted back around the corner. "Looks like the flame is still lit," she teased.

"Ugh, no, stop it," Lena laughed nervously.

"Can't lie to your bestie," Kara chirped as they slid into the back of Lena's hired car.

"Ugh!" Lena griped.

"Soooo," Kara drawled as the car began moving, "-that- went well."

Lena covered her face with her hands. "Stop stop stop."

"Two years didn't age him at all, did it," Kara teased. "From the look on his face, you haven't aged a day either."

"What look on his face?"

Kara grabbed Lena's wrists, pulling her hands down. "Like you were the only star in the sky," she whispered. "You didn't see it?"

"I did see him looking at me," Lena murmured.

"And you were blushing," Kara said. "Just a cute little cheek stain to make you even prettier."

"Uuggghhhh!" Lena wrenched her arms out of Kara's grasp and covered her face with her hands again.

"I heard him ask you to dinner," Kara teased. "Why didn't you say yes?"

Lena peeked through her fingers. "Remember those painful things?"

Kara sucked in her breath. "Ahhh, I get it."

Lena sighed and let her hands drop. "Plus, I don't. I mean...I'm confused about a lot of things right now. Except that I'm so proud of him for finally cracking the nano swarm."

"You must have done a lot of foundational work," Kara replied. "Shouldn't you be sharing the spotlight?"

Lena shook her head. "No. Not this time. Luthor association would be the kiss of death, and this particular technology needs wide application without people questioning the motives of the inventors. When I left to come here, I made sure my name had been wiped from every possible place in the research and documentation."

Kara frowned. "That bad?"

"Do you remember the day the sun turned red?" Lena asked sharply. "My brother turned it red?"

Kara nodded mutely.

"I was bound to a chair inside the LuthorCorp skyscraper, helpless, while TVs blared around me and Lex alternated between raving about being the Man of Tomorrow and taunting me because he could see how much it hurt me." Lena closed her eyes in pain. "I let him hold me hostage because I'd been fitted with a police wire. Jack was there two seconds after the police stormed the room, hugging me and picking me up physically to carry me to the car." She opened her eyes. "And when I see him, I think of that," she sighed. "That and how much I loved him, once." -And how much I love you now, Kara.-

Kara scooted over and flung her arms around Lena, pulling her close. "Is there anyone in your life who isn't linked with pain and hurt?"

"You," Lena replied softly.

"Love you, super bestie." Kara squeezed her gently.

"Love you too," Lena sighed.

They stayed cuddled together until the car pulled up in front of Kara's building.

"Are you going back to work?" Kara asked softly as she relaxed her hold and let Lena pull away.

Lena nodded. "I think I should."

"Text or call if you need anything," Kara said firmly. "Okay?"

"Okay."

Lena slumped back against the seat after the door closed behind Kara. Her heart was threatening to beat out of her chest, or rip itself in two (one half for Jack and one half for Kara), or possibly both. She needed research and development time in the lab, stat. Science always shut her heart up, filling it with the pleasant warmth of discovery.

She spent a pleasant evening down in one of her larger labs, providing feedback on existing projects her teams were working on and helping them tweak their products for optimization.

Kara, on the other hand, spent her evening getting blown up inside a car with her source before going home and flopping onto her bed, her mind whirling until it shut down into sleep. 

\--

> Kara smiled at Lena. "You look amazing in blue. In anything, but really, in blue."
> 
> Lena blushed. "You think so?" She swished the fancy dress a little. "You look good in red."
> 
> Kara did a a tiny pose. She knew the dark red skirt suit wasn't remotely her style, but it suited the needs of the evening. "Thank you, gorgeous."
> 
> They shared the lightest of kisses since both had already applied their lipstick.
> 
> "You put me both to shame," said a warm British accent behind them.
> 
> Jack was dressed in the sharpest of three-piece suits, impeccably tailored to his body.
> 
> "It certainly beats what you used to wear, my darling," said Lena playfully. "Remember, we're a power throuple, as the media is so fond of reminding us. We must dress like it."
> 
> "Throuple is the -worst- word," Kara said. "Why can't we be a trio or a triad?"
> 
> "Because the media industry is awful," Lena bantered.
> 
> Jack held out his arms for both women to lay a hand inside his elbows. "I am the luckiest man in National City. My darling and -her- darling, attending my celebratory gala with me."
> 
> "I think the real celebration will come -later-," Lena said, winking at Kara.
> 
> Kara grinned, tongue between her teeth as if to say "naughty girl" silently.

Both Lena and Kara woke up at the same time, from the same dream, even though they were in their own bedrooms.

Kara caught her breath. -What is WRONG with me?! Why am I a pervert even in my sleep?- She sighed. -They're both gorgeous...but YOU just got out of a relationship and therefore YOU need to regulate your hormones, Zor-El. Right now. You were literally on fire from an exploding car not five hours ago, what is WRONG with you?!-

Lena sighed, closed her eyes, and bit her lip. -Both of them, so beautiful...if I could have them? I would.- She smiled at the thought, and allowed herself to be carried back off to dreamland by the woman she loved and the man who taught her how to love.

The Kara-related self-loathing on Lena's part would wait til the morning, thankfully.

\--

"I don't want to say that Jack himself is up to anything," Kara told the Superfriends assembled around the briefing table the next morning (one Lena Luthor being notably absent due to not receiving an invitation), "but his CFO is definitely hiding something."

"If we can get close to Jack," Alex mused, "then maybe we can figure something out."

"The problem is that only Lena has a chance of getting close to him, and she absolutely cannot know we were even talking about this," Kara said.

"What about the CFO? You said her name was Beth?" Mon-El snapped and shot finger guns. "I can chat her up, flirt a little, you know...get her all friendly?"

Kara scoffed goodnaturedly. "Trust -you- to find the first opportunity to be a scruffy-looking nerf herder."

Winn guffawed and Mon-El looked at them both, puzzled.

J'onn shook his head. "Not wise. You can come on strong sometimes, Mon-El, -too- strong. The suggestion is appreciated, but it won't work."

Mon-El clicked his tongue. "It was just a suggestion. I could do it to this Jack fella too. I've got all kinds of ways of making -friends-."

Kara pretended to gag. "I need ear bleach, or is it brain bleach?"

Mon-El smirked and shrugged. "Can I help it if my good looks and charm ought to be weaponized? It was just an idea."

"Anyway," J'onn continued. "Does anyone have something else to add?"

"Lena turned dinner with Jack down yesterday, but I could tell she wanted to say yes. Maybe he'll try to ask her again? And then we can think of something."

"It's a big if, but I'm okay with it," Alex replied. "Winn, do you think you could at least look around digitally and see if anything interesting is stored in their accounts?"

"Right away."

"Let's see what Winn can learn," J'onn said. "We might not have to do anything else."

"Doubtful," Mon-El drawled. "He used to work with Lena? I bet Winn gets dumped on his digital ass before he even gets to the firewall door."

"Hey!" Winn protested. "I don't insult what -you- do, Mister I Can't Move No Seriously."

"I'm going to flip your tincan van when the tincan himself is out playing whackamole with thugs," Mon-El bantered as they all broke off to resume their jobs.

"Kara. Be careful with this. Lena is probably very confused emotionally since she and Jack used to be intimate," J'onn said quietly as he walked Kara out to the balcony she usually used.

"I know," Kara replied just as quietly. "I am too. I want her to be happy, but I can't help but think something bad is lurking behind Biomax. And whether or not Jack's a part of it, I'm afraid it will break her heart."

J'onn kept his expression completely neutral. -Not my place. Not my place. Not now, anyway.- "That's why you have to be careful. And be there for her."

Kara nodded as she pushed the balcony door open. "I will."

She flew away a second later.

\--

When Jack opened the door to Lena's office, he was wholly unsurprised to see her hard at work.

"Jess, can you cancel dinner? This is gonna take me till at least eight o'clock, and I fully intend on crashing afterwards," she called while looking down at the paper she was writing on.

"That's disappointing," he chuckled.

Lena looked up, astonished. "You don't have an appointment."

"No, but I was hoping to get one." He smiled, and Lena felt her insides squish just a little.

"How did you get past Jess?" she demanded. Jess had been overly protective of her since she'd been cleared of all charges relating to her mother's escape from prison, so it was beyond Lena how she'd let a strange man past her desk.

"No one's above a snack break," Jack chuckled. "So, I know you're free for dinner, good news. But you have no interest in dinner, bad news." He walked over to her desk. "It's been an emotional roller coaster since I walked in."

Lena rolled her eyes. "Oh, yeah, you seem wrecked."

"Oh, completely. But I'm hoping I don't have enough data." He sat down across from her. "For instance, would you be willing to go to dinner if I was a factor?"

Lena smirked. "No."

"Are you mad at me?" Jack smirked back. "Is it because I cracked the nano code alone? Seems petty for you," he teased.

"Just stop, Jacky," Lena drawled. "You know I wish you all the success."

"But?" he prompted.

"I'm still not going for dinner with you." She smirked again. This was turning her heart and head upside down. Here was the previous love of her life being coy and flirty and asking her out, which made her stomach do the happy flipflops. But whether she liked it or not, her heart was currently owned by Kara, who she could never be with anyway, and everything was, to put it mildly, awful.

"Do you have fun here?" Jack asked after a moment.

"I feel good about the work we do," Lena bantered. 

"You had fun with me," Jack replied, his flirty tone edging with nostalgia. "I mean, ruining your eyesight staring into a microscope. Throwing said microscope at my head when I was insufferable."

Lena just watched him speak, one eyebrow quirked.

"I don't like how things ended with us," he said.

Lena held her breath, then sighed. "You could have made it easier on me. I didn't want it to end that way."

"I'm not here to make it harder. I just miss you."

Lena blushed and looked away. Her body was being flooded with endorphins and hormones from her reactions to him. The love that she thought she'd gotten over--but she hadn't.

"May I...please...have dinner with you? Simple as that."

She looked back at him, quirking an eyebrow. "Just dinner?"

"It's entirely your prerogative," he replied, smiling.

She grinned back almost automatically, still unsure how to respond. Because his smile was just one quarter-shade off from what she remembered.

I've agreed to have dinner with Jack tonight at 8. At the new fine dining place  
Talk me out of it?  
Please?  
I'm terrified.  
Oh no, are you on a Supergirl call?  
...Kara?

\--

Kara wasn't finished dealing with Snapper Carr, his source, or the murder she'd witnessed until 8:05. She hadn't had a chance to look at her phone all afternoon, either. And when she finally did, back in the DEO rotunda, she gasped.

"What?" Mon-El asked.

She showed him the screen.

"Oh no," he said as he read.

"We're going," Kara stated firmly. 

"I just don't think she meant in -person-, is the only--" Mon-El tried to protest as Kara grabbed his hand and dragged him along.

"No, come on!" They were almost to the balcony.

"This just feels like stalking," Mon-El replied, sighing.

"No, it's journalism!" Kara insisted. If Lena wanted help getting out of the date, Kara would have her back.

"Okay, but it's very creepy journalism!" Mon-El shot into the air after her.

\--

"Thanks for coming. I know L Corp's very demanding."

"I -do- enjoy it, you know. For what it's worth," Lena said, suddenly defensive.

"You always loved a challenge. You look stunning, by the way."

Lena laughed and shook her head slightly. -This is a bit much, Jack. In public?-

"Oh, my God! Are you guys eating here?" Kara enthused as she spotted them and wound her way over, Mon-El in tow.

"We're eating here!" Mon-El echoed, playing along perfectly.

"What a complete and utter coincidence." Lena was unable to keep the sarcasm out of her voice as she scrunched her nose slightly. -When did you get my texts?!-

Kara laughed, and looked over at Jack, whose posture remained very relaxed.

"Ms. Danvers," he nodded to her, giving her a polite smile.

"And this is Mike," she said, pushing him forward a little.

"Mike," enunciated Mon-El, sticking out his hand.

Jack rose and shook the hand he was offered. "Mike." He smirked. "I specifically asked that I be the handsomest guy in the restaurant tonight."

"He's charming!" Mon-El tossed over his shoulder to Kara and Lena, indicating Jack.

"Do you mind if we join?" Kara asked hurriedly, sitting down next to Lena.

"Oh, uh..." Jack was at a loss as Mon-El slipped by him.

"Yeah, let's sit here." Mon-El took his seat quickly.

Lena was thrilled and simultaneously terrified. "Kara, I appreciate the rescue, but it's okay now," she replied, trying to keep her expression neutral.

Kara smiled at her before whispering, "That's what friends are for!" She turned to the man accompanying her best friend to dinner. "So, Jack, how's the Biomax rollout going?"

"Trying to get me in your crosshairs, Ms. Danvers?" Jack chuckled.

"A reporter's job is never done," she fired back cheerfully.

"I can respect it," he replied easily, sipping his wine "Biomax is going wonderfully. So far."

"So, how did you know it was ready? Did you, uh, do any trials? Human trials?" Kara wanted to smack herself with how clumsy she was being.

"It's all public record...if you're curious."

"-How- did you figure it out?" Lena asked, smirking. "I want to know."

"Is that the only reason you came?" Jack asked, his tone suddenly dull, expecting rejection.

"No." Lena's mouth remained neutral, but one of her eyebrows quirked ever so slightly.

Kara recognized that dangerous, man-eating CEO look, and she realized that maybe Lena did, in fact, have this completely handled before she and Mon-El had crashed it.

Jack stuttered just slightly. "Uh, okay, so, a few months after you left, I stayed up all night. And the sun came up, and there was a flock of starlings going by. And they were all moving in perfect sync. Like when one turned, all the others turned. And I thought, I've made a terrible mistake." He swallowed hard. "I should have gone with her. I'm no good without her."

Lena held his gaze. -No. You wouldn't say this to me in front of people. You know I wouldn't have let you. Who have you become?-

"And then I realized I had been modeling the nano swarm on the wrong kind of animal." Jack warmed back up to his original topic. "See, bees need a base, a queen, to revolve around. We'd been trying to make a nanobot into a queen by programming a protective algorithm, but..."

Lena got caught up in the moment as it clicked for her, leaning over the table excitedly. "Oh, my God, murmuration!"

Jack gave her a lopsided smile, and -that- was truly him. "Yeah."

"The nano swarm, it migrates!"

"Yes!" Jack was looking at her with adoration.

"It's linked AI sentience," Lena said, wonderingly.

"And it's all controlled through the Spheerical lab mainframe," Jack replied, leaning over towards her. "And I would never have gotten there if I hadn't been thinking about you."

As they held each other's gaze, Kara shot Mon-El a glance, which he returned and gave a slight nod. She faked startling, and pulled out her phone. "Oh, they said our table's ready. Guess they didn't hear us when we said we were sitting with you guys. So we're gonna go."

Once they rose, Jack stood to shake hands again, but Mon-El pulled him into a hug with a cordial "no, no, no."

As they hugged, Mon-El said into Jack's ear, "Hey, listen, I feel a connection to you. Like a man-nection? We should hang. You should call me."

Jack blinked, confused. "Yeah, sure, I'll do that."

"Okay." Mon-El let him go.

"All right." Jack still looked utterly puzzled as he returned to his seat.

"Good night," Kara said softly to Lena.

"Good night," she replied smoothly, almost coldly. -Apologies later.-

"What were you doing?" Kara whispered as they walked towards the entrance.

"I stole Jack's security badge," Mon-El whispered back, pleased with himself. "You know, for journalism."

Kara gasped. "What. Did you. Do?"

Mon-El wiggled the badge down by his waist. "Use me for good. Pleeeeease," he parroted in a silly voice.

"This is an exception," she told him as she snatched it out of his hands.

"Yes! Shenanigans!" Mon-El wasn't done being pleased with himself.

Kara rolled her eyes. "Shut up."

Mon-El just fist-pumped (out of anyone's view but Kara's) and grinned.

"So. You have...interesting friends here in National City," Jack said, smiling.

"You have no idea," Lena replied, smirking and lifting her wineglass to her lips.

\--

"That's a nice view, Lena," Jack said, stepping towards the plate glass windows that made up the outer wall of the L Corp CEO suite.

"It's pretty decent," she demurred easily.

"Oh, pretty deece."

"Oh, no. You did -not- just say that." She chuckled.

"I'm ridiculous, I know." He turned back to look at her.

"Yeah."

They shared a small laugh, an easy laugh that was 99.9% perfect, but Lena was now reading every one of Jack's movements and reactions for the 0.1% that wasn't right. Including the caring, worried look his smile morphed into.

"I'm so sorry," he said after a moment.

"For what?"

"I made you choose. L Corp or me. I was greedy."

"You were hurt," she replied softly. "You know, I sometimes wonder what would've happened if I'd stayed. Maybe we would have figured the nano swarm out together. Maybe I'd have a legacy of my own apart from my family." This emotion was real, what she was showing. -I'm exposing my heart to you, darling. Show me you're still my darling Jacky.-

"Now I wonder what would have happened if I'd have said there was room...for both me and your family. I mean, if I had made room...if I could still do that."

Lena closed the small distance between them, laying a hand over his heart and tipping her chin up to kiss him.

She hadn't been kissed in a very, -very- long time, and the last time she had, it had been him. So it should have felt exactly like coming home. And god, did she ever want it to feel that way. To be kissed like she was wanted, loved, -desired- by the man who'd said all the right romantic things during dinner and who -knew- her body more intimately than anyone. And yes, it did, it really did.

But.

It was 0.1% wrong.

\--

Kara and Mon-El poked their heads around the corner to check for anyone coming down the hall.

"Okay," Mon-El whispered.

"Okay."

They straightened up and began to walk down the hall as nonchalantly as they could.

"Quiet," Kara whispered to Mon-El.

"Be very quiet," he replied instantly. Then he pulled his arm up at the elbow and clicked on a flashlight, illuminating ahead of them just like he'd seen during their endless marathons of CSI during Kara's funemployment.

"Put that away!" Kara hissed.

"What? I'm helping!"

"I'm a woman with -X-ray vision-!"

"That's a fair point." He clicked the light off and put it away.

A second later, they were at the correct door. Kara held up the transparent ID card and waved it in front of the reader. It clicked, made a few muted beeping noises, and the door opened itself.

"That was easy," Mon-El whispered as they stepped inside.

"This is a nice office," he remarked as they walked slowly through the tastefully furnished suite with its many pieces of art and one wall fully backlit in warm red.

"Shsh." Kara sat down at the desk and fluttered her fingers over the keys for a moment. "Um." She sighed, and typed in a password.

The screen flashed "Access Granted" immediately.

"How did you do that?"

"Password was 'starling'." Kara gave him a cheesy grin.

"That romantic bastard," Mon-El replied, admiringly.

"Okay. Here we go." Kara pushed her glasses back up her nose and began to click through file manager windows at superspeed. "Human...trials." She clicked the folder. "It's empty. The whistleblower was right."

Mon-El pointed at the folder labeled Self Trial. "No, what about this one?"

Kara clicked the video file inside the folder, and they were greeted with a still of Jack sitting at his desk. She clicked play.

As they watched Jack inject himself with the nanobots, Kara and Mon-El just stared, horrified.

"The human trials aren't missing. There -weren't- any human trials! Jack knew the nano swarm was dangerous from the beginning. That's why Derrick and Joe had to die, Jack's the killer!"

Mon-El stared at her. Yeah, they weren't a couple anymore, but that didn't mean he couldn't admire how much of a badass Kara could be sometimes.

"Thumb drive," Kara reminded him quickly.

Mon-El snapped out of it. "Oh, yes. Good idea." He pulled it out of his pocket and inserted it into the slot on the side of the monitor. "Got it."

\--

As soon as Lena had settled into the pleasantness of the 99.9% perfect moment, it ended and he broke the kiss.

"Jack?" she asked, vulnerability creeping into her voice.

"I, uh... I have to go," Jack said, looking extremely distracted.

"Yeah, of course," Lena stammered. "I...I totally get it."

Jack blinked at her for a moment. "I...um, forgot about something at the office."

She noticed his gaze tracking from one of her eyes to the other. -No. You are not my Jack. But why, and how?-

Without another word, he left her standing there.

\--

Lena was so deep into looking at old photos of herself and Jack the next afternoon that she didn't hear Kara knocking until the second time. She looked up, a dazed smile on her face. "Sorry! Sorry, I didn't hear you."

"Distracted," Kara said with a sly tone to her voice.

"Busted," Lena admitted.

"So, uh...sorry about last night," Kara said, making her way to the seat across from the desk.

"Yeah, I thought you were ignoring my texts," Lena chuckled.

"I didn't get a chance to look at my phone until you were already at dinner," Kara replied. "Did the date go well after we left?"

Lena held Kara's gaze for a moment, and then sighed. "He's not the same person he was."

Kara let out the breath she'd been holding, nervously. "I guess it's a good thing I came here to talk to you about him, then. I've been investigating him."

Lena scoffed gently. "Really? I couldn't tell." 

Kara couldn't hold it in any longer. "Lena, Biomax is dangerous and he's covering it up."

"He's covering -something- up, that much I know, but I haven't been able to figure out -what- yet. Danger, though? Jack would never hurt anyone."

Kara pulled the video of Jack infecting himself with the nanobots up on her phone, and they both watched it for a long moment.

Lena flinched as Jack cried out in pain. -Darling, my sweet darling, WHY?-

"He's using the nano swarm to kill people," Kara said after the video ended. "The swarm made a car explode when a witness was inside it, and they ate another witness alive somehow."

Lena sighed, gritting her teeth and closing her eyes. "Who else knows?"

"Just us and Mon-El. I didn't want to report to the DEO without talking to you first."

Lena nodded. "And I've just figured it out. Since I've seen him, he's always just been the tiniest bit off in his reactions." She got up from her desk and began to pace. "Ninety-nine point nine percent the Jack I know, point one percent strange. And this must be the reason. The nano swarm. Being machines and not organic wetware with feelings and memory, they could assume a realistic enough facsimile, but it doesn't pass the sniff test if you're close enough to the real person."

Kara nodded. Lena's brilliant brain was now completely engaged in problem-solving mode, so she just watched her pace and think aloud.

"The nanobots have to be controlled by something. They're machines, artificial intelligence, they -must- have a directive or they're inert and useless."

"But who gives them their directive? It certainly can't be him," Kara said. -Come on, Lena, make the connection.-

Lena froze, locking gazes with Kara. "Beth Breen," she said.

Kara nodded. "That's what I think, anyway."

"Right. That sneaky, nasty, conniving -bitch-. I'm going to confront them," Lena said immediately.

"No!" Kara almost yelled, getting to her feet. "Lena, they've killed two people. I know how you feel about him, but you will be the third if you confront them!"

"How else are we supposed to get a confession?" Lena demanded. "You can't go in there guns blazing and J'onn ready to rip the truth straight from her cerebellum!"

"Why not?" Kara challenged. "We might need the DEO to contain the swarm!"

"Because this is not -extranormal-," Lena hissed. "This is humans, just humans. You'll be reprimanded by the President for stepping outside the DEO's bounds!"

Kara huffed. "Please, just promise me you'll stay safe. And you'll be in constant contact?"

"Look, you can go with me, but you have to stay out of sight and not show up as Supergirl unless I tell you to."

Kara snarled and flopped back in her seat. "I don't like it! I want to keep you safe, Lena."

"I know, and I truly appreciate it," Lena said, looking down at Kara, "but this fight is best left to me. At least, in the beginning."

"When are you going?" Kara gazed up at Lena. -She's so freaking gorgeous.-

"I was trying to work up the nerve to as you walked in," Lena admitted. "Looking at photos of the two of us. Seeing his smile and knowing that the smile he's wearing now is just two shades off of a sunset. God only knows what he's been forced to do."

Kara stood up again. "Then let's go. No time like the present." She'd already dropped her info packet off to Snapper, so nothing was holding her back.

\--

"Jack?" Lena called across the large, echo-y lab, heels clicking as she walked quickly towards him.

"Hey." Jack looked up from his microscope to see her worried face. "Uh, what's wrong?"

"You lied to me." She stated it firmly, waiting for his reaction.

He looked confused. "Everything I said last night was the truth."

"I'm not talking about us, Jack. Biomax."

"What about it?" He frowned, convincingly.

"I saw the video, Jack." Lena kept her voice as neutral as possible. She was being monitored by the Breen woman, after all. "You shot those things into yourself. Faked the human trials. You... killed people."

"Killed people? I don't know what you're talking about."

"You knew, -we- knew three years ago that the nano swarms had a side effect. The rats' brain chemistry was forever altered. They had no control." Lena was no longer keeping as tight of a leash on her emotions as she thought she could. "We could make them do whatever we wanted. You did this to yourself!"

"Lena, I don't know what you're talking about," Jack insisted.

She stared deeply into his eyes for the first time, and saw that there was nothing behind them. Not anymore. She sighed. "You're telling the truth."

"Miss Luthor," called a feminine voice.

Jack's face fell and froze, no longer capable of any movement.

Lena just stared, marshaling enough surprise on her face to be believed.

"He can't hear you. No one can."

After a moment, Lena rolled her shoulders back and composed herself again. "So who killed all those people?" 

"Jack did," Beth replied easily. "I mean, he didn't choose to, and he doesn't remember, but he did." She indicated the glowing blue device attached to her ear.

"You've been controlling him this whole time," Lena stated flatly.

"The poor, sweet boy actually wanted to scrap the whole thing just because of a pesky little side effect that removes free will. Not financially responsible. Luckily, I was there to step in. You know, it's true what they say. Behind every great man is a strong woman."

"Oh, I wouldn't know. I've never stood behind a man," Lena sneered politely.

"You just clean up after your brother. Idiot. You walked away from the breakthrough of the century."

"It doesn't work." Lena replied icily.

"See, I think it works beautifully. I have a brilliant figurehead that will do everything I say. The entire world will welcome the nano swarm into every hospital, army base, and eventually, home."

"God, you are repulsive."

"I'm a realist."

Lena smirked slightly and cast her eyes down.

"What's funny?" Beth asked.

"Now you're going to kill me. That's the only reason you're telling me all of this." 

"Again, not very financially responsible." Beth tapped the device on her ear and Jack began to move again. "I already control Jack. Why would I kill you when I can control you, and, by extension, L Corp? Think of that merger."

Jack turned around with the nanobot injector in his hand.

"Okay, Jacky, put it down, all right?" Lena began to back away as he advanced on her. "Jack, listen, I know you're in there somewhere, okay? You listen to me, all right?"

Kara couldn't take it a moment longer. She flew in and scooped Lena up, setting her down a safe distance away. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

Jack dissolved into millions of nanobots before their eyes, swirling and getting their direction from Beth and her earpiece.

"You've gotta get out of here," Kara said, looking at Lena.

But Lena was watching the nanobots head for them. "No, I've got a better idea. You keep them occupied."

Kara took flight, making the tiny robots chase her around the lab in intricate patterns. Lena watched for a moment, then ran towards the computer.

As soon as Beth realized she was being tricked, she waited for Lena to run near her and kicked her in the stomach. "Did I mention that I'm a black belt?"

Lena straightened up and threw an expert punch right into Beth's face. "Did I mention I was a Luthor?"

The two women slugged each other until Beth fell down, and then Kara turned on the nano swarm and blasted them with her freeze breath.

Which was, of course, exactly the wrong thing to do, because before she knew it, she found herself pinned by the bots crucifix-style.

"Supergirl!" Lena exclaimed with fear. She turned to her former lover, who was still standing where he had been, unmoving. "Jack, make it stop!"

Nothing happened, but then Lena saw that the glowing blue device had fallen out of Beth's ear. She crushed it underneath one of her Louboutins neatly.

Jack took a huge gasp of air and looked over at her. "Lena!" The nano swarm within him sent a wave of grey through his body as they reset themselves.

Now, -now- Jack was one hundred percent himself. And Lena could heal him, she knew, if they could just get out of this alive.

Kara was fighting the swarm with all her strength, but they were sliding up her body, covering her, demanding that her skin be opened so they could find a new host. She still had the sun on her side, but there were -so- many bots, and she -was- losing.

The nanobots wouldn't quit power cycling, and Jack cried out in pain every time the grey wave swallowed his form. "No! No," he pleaded in vain with the tiny machines.

Lena looked back and forth at them, trying not to panic. Both her loves were in fatal danger and she had -no idea- what to do, which further terrified her.

"Lena," Kara managed to cry weakly.

"Lena, help!" Jack begged. "The mainframe!"

Lena ran to the computer, taking stock quickly. "I think I can override it!" She began to type maniacally.

"Lena, hurry," Kara begged. The bots were going to have their way, she was going to die. -But maybe Jack still has a chance? Come on, Lena!-

"I'm almost there, okay?" Lena kept typing.

"You'll kill him," Beth snarled as she dragged herself to her feet. "The override destroys the nanobots. They've merged with him. You kill them, you kill him." She advanced on Lena, who promptly elbowed her in the face and knocked her down again.

Lena looked around desperately. Jack was in agony, his body revolting against him. Kara was trying to fight off the nano swarm, but the tiny machines had mummified her up to her mouth and were trying to cover her nose as well. If that happened, she wouldn't be able to last much longer.

And with that, Lena made her decision. "I'm sorry, Jacky," she told him. -I will always, always love you.-

Jack looked up at her. "Do it. Please!" he gasped.

Lena hit the final button on the keyboard, and the computer declared "System override" calmly.

The nanobots flew away from Kara and fled Jack's body. He fell to the ground, groaning.

Lena rushed to his side and cradled his face in her hands as gently as she could. "Jacky?" she asked in desperation.

"Love you," he managed to whisper before death claimed him.

\--

The blanket fort had been built once again, and Lena lay in the middle of it, watching Meet Me In St. Louis numbly. Her eyes were on the screen, sure, but her mind and heart were miles away with the body currently being incinerated at the crematorium for safety purposes. Jack, the only man she'd ever loved, was dead, and she had murdered him. She had been forced to pick one love over another, and while he'd begged her to put him out of his mind-controlled misery, it still felt like she'd betrayed him.

But she would have picked Kara anyway. Supergirl over a single human, no matter how brilliant. Supergirl could save the world. What separated Lena from her family was that, if the world were at stake, she would choose it every time.

"Thanks," Kara murmured into her phone from near the door before walking back over and crawling into the fort.

Lena turned her head to look up at Kara hovering over her. -I wish you'd kiss me,- the thought sprang up unnaturally quickly.

"Just got the word. Beth's in jail," Kara said softly.

"Good," Lena replied back, pure ice in her tone as she rolled her head back to the side, breaking the eye contact.

"...Lena?" Kara whispered. She wanted to touch Lena's shoulder, pull her in for a hug, hold her hand, -something-, but her best friend was the most fragile she'd ever seen her, and Kara was afraid she'd shatter underneath her fingertips.

"When Lex was arrested, my mother was there," Lena spoke without emotion. "My mother saw her son dragged, bleeding and raving from her house. And when I got there, Lillian was tidying his room like he'd been away on a business trip."

She turned back over to look up at Kara. "That's how I feel. Cold and calm. Until I think about Beth dying in jail, and then I feel warm for a minute."

Kara's heart broke at the sneer curling Lena's upper lip. "You're in shock, darling."

"I don't know. Loss does strange things to my family, and I've lost a -lot- of people." Lena knew her expression was sadness bordering on anger, a very Luthor method of dealing with the worst.

"I'm right here," Kara said firmly, reaching out to brush small wisps of hair back from Lena's face. "I'm not going anywhere."

"I think...when I feel things again, I'm gonna be very, very afraid." Lena sighed, still looking up into worried blue eyes. "...of the person I might be."

"No matter what, I'll still love you," Kara said. "I'll always love you and I'll be by your side if you need me."

"Promise?" Lena asked softly.

"What are best friends for?" Kara replied before snuggling down next to Lena and curling closely around her.

They didn't leave Kara's apartment until the next morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *passes out Kleenex* I know, it broke my heart too. Lena deserves all the nice soft things :(


	11. alex (not appearing)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another author has mentioned something about some kind of reader app pulling fics off of AO3 and profiting off them. So I've changed all my fics to Registered Users Only. Why do people have to ruin our nice things?

Meet me at the DEO? I'm asking everyone.  
What's up?  
I just received the most interesting visitor. 🤔

"Given the specs of the proposal, I can only assume nefarious intentions," Lena said as she finished summing up the presentation stored on the thumb drive. "And when you have nefarious intentions on Earth-38, who do you call? A Luthor."

"Who proposed this?" J'onn asked. "Clearly an alien."

"Not just -any- alien," Lena chuckled. "She gave her name as Rhea Logan. Which is a savvy way to anglicize Lar Gand."

Kara's jaw nearly clanged to the floor. "Mon-El's mother."

"Indeed." Lena nodded. "Where -is- Mon-El, anyway? We need him."

"Sorry! Sorry," Mon-El called as he ran in. "What'd I miss?"

J'onn fixed him with a glare. "If you wish to continue to work here, Mon-El, you must be punctual for all hands on deck meetings!"

"Your mother is trying to do something evil and use Lena to help her," Kara said.

Mon-El's expression hardened. "She just won't give up, will she?"

Lena shook her head. "I need you to look this over and tell me what -you- think she's up to."

Mon-El nodded. "Give me a few minutes?"

J'onn handed him a tablet, and they all stood around the briefing table while he read.

"I'm supposed to meet with her in--" Lena checked her watch. "Three hours. And we need a game plan. How far do I play along and pretend I don't see what she's trying to do?"

"Why do you have to play along at all?" Kara complained. "We already know how dangerous she is."

"Because she'll never stop until she has me," Mon-El said, still clearly reading. "Never."

Lena nodded. "And if I have read this correctly, the Earth will be in serious danger."

Winn sighed. "You'd think we'd get a break."

"You've been here for long enough to know that no, we -never- get a break," J'onn said.

Mon-El put the tablet down, his face ashen. He looked at Lena.

"I'm right, aren't I," Lena said softly. "Invasion on a mass scale and subjugation."

He nodded, unable to speak.

"Oh Rao," Kara wobbled. "What do we do?"

"We play along," Lena said, firmly. "Once I have my hands on the full plans, I can start figuring out how and where to invisibly sabotage the technology."

"Lena, that puts you in so much danger," Kara protested. "You can't do that!"

"I can and I will," Lena replied, steel in her voice. "It would tip her off that I've run to the DEO if I back out now."

"So what are you proposing to do?" J'onn asked, tense.

"I'm going to meet with her. I need to ascertain her secondary motives for asking -me- instead of someone like Morgan Edge, and then gain her trust enough to get my hands on the actual blueprints. And then, we meet again to discuss what we're up against." Lena sighed. "This is going to -wreck- my productivity schedule."

"I can't believe the lengths she's going to," Mon-El said flatly. "She really has gone crazy."

"It would seem so," J'onn replied. "Thank you for coming to us immediately, Lena. We are all behind you."

Lena nodded. "I think she expects me to keep this a secret from the Superfriends. So I'll probably need to act like it."

"Lena," Kara begged. "Please just be careful?"

"Always," Lena replied easily.

"On another note, Kara?" J'onn asked. "Have you heard from Alex this morning?"

"I know she was over at Maggie's," Kara replied. "Let me go talk to her."

J'onn nodded. He had a sinking feeling that something was wrong, however.

\--

Don't worry. I'll make sure your boyfriend stays safe.  
He's not my boyfriend, Lena.  
Wait  
What?  
We broke up. Remember how I said I just had a hard time being around him sometimes? That happened more and more and more, and he felt it too.  
😨  
Turns out the novelty of not breaking someone's nose when you kiss them wears off pretty fast when you don't have any actual chemistry.  
But you seemed so happy when you crashed my date with Jack?  
We were rescuing you! And did I introduce him to Jack as my boyfriend?  
No 😯 You didn't. You just said Mike.  
Because he's my friend, not my boyfriend.  
Anyway. I'm cool, he's cool, as you can see he still works for the DEO and we are just fine.  
Wait. Rhea thinks you're still dating.  
And she can if she wants. We actually workshopped that and decided it's better for the Daxamites to think we're together. But the Superfriends know the truth.  
How long has everyone else known?  
😣 We broke up the night before Jack came to town. Your needs had to come first, and I forgot I hadn't told you in the wake of it all.  
I'm sorry  
Forgive me? 😿

Kara called a second later.

"Yes, darling?" Lena tried to keep her voice steady.

"I know, I -know-, being kept in the dark is your kryptonite. But it just wasn't the time? Because it didn't wreck my world, it was actually a good thing, and you needed me without dragging my own life into it," Kara babbled. "And I'm so, so sorry I kept it from you."

"But it's only been a couple of days, you say," Lena replied, slowly. "When did everyone else find out?"

"The day after the press conference."

"I was definitely a little busy." Lena sighed. "Kara, we're okay. Not being the first to hear everything doesn't mean you're excluding me, I know that. I would have known first if not for Jack's timing, wouldn't I?"

"Yes," Kara said immediately. "Yes, you would have."

"Then it's okay," Lena replied, letting herself warm up again. "Really, it is."

"Are you sure?"

Lena smiled. "Absolutely. And you're happier this way?"

"One hundred percent. Sometimes you just gotta turn a bad relationship into something good instead."

"Yeah. I should go, get back to all of this."

"Me too, oop Alex is calling me. Love you!"

"Love you too. Bye."

"Bye!"

Lena laid her phone down and tried to -not- have a panic attack. Kara was single. Kara was single again. And that was terrible for not only her concentration, but for her bleeding, battered heart. -Hope may be the thing with feathers, but if it tries to fly with me one more time, I won't survive it.-

She returned to looking over the proposal with laser-like precision, trying to figure out which concepts were missing and what they might, in fact, be.

\--

When the queen of Daxam came strolling into the L Corp CEO's office, Lena was ready. Her hair was up, her outfit was crisp, and she fancied she radiated Boss-Ass Bitch vibes.

"Rhea, I've been looking at your proposal and I have never seen anything like it," she said smoothly.

"I hope in a good way." Rhea smiled.

"A device for matter transformation and reconfiguration? It's astonishing."

"Well, I saw your TED Talk on the future of quantum technology, which made me think it might be right up your alley."

Lena allowed herself just a moment of nerding out about the potential positive aspects of the transmatter portal as she walked around her desk, pulling up the blueprints on her QLED television. "This could revolutionize travel, energy, security, just about anything. You could move food and water to famine-stricken areas in an instant. And solve climate change. That is, if it works. The proposal you lay out is sound, but it is all theoretical."

"Which is why I need you. My thought was, if we wed L Corp's work in zero-size intelligence with my design, I'm confident we can make it a reality. Of course, I kept a few key details out of the proposal. I needed to gauge your interest before revealing all of my secrets."

"Well, I'm interested."

"Good. Because I made us a reservation at Paka's."

"Well, how can I say no?"

They chuckled together.

\--

"So where did you study?"

"Undergrad at Oxford, Masters of Engineering from MIT." 

"-I- went to MIT. Did you have Martinez?"

Rhea chuckled. "I think I was there quite a few years before you, but I will take the compliment. And I will offer you one in return. The applications of your black body field generator blew me away. You're quite the genius."

"And you are too kind," Lena replied. -Tell me something I don't know.- 

"I'm being honest. I wish I had a daughter like you. Your mother must be proud," Rhea purred.

"That's not how I'd describe her," Lena said, dryly. -And here you go, you didn't do your research, you evil woman.- 

"Mothers and daughters, not always the easiest relationship," Rhea replied.

"It's more like apocalyptic, but you know," Lena scoffed.

"We don't have to talk about it," Rhea offered.

-Oh no, you get to hear the Cliff Notes so you think I'm attaching to you like the orphan I am.- "No, no, it's fine. You know? She never really cared about me and only came back into my life to steal from me and frame me for a felony. So, you know, usual mother-daughter stuff." Lena reached for her scotch.

Rhea chuckled. "Well, you have a sense of humor about it. I'm impressed." She poured and took a long swig of scotch. "I try, but I'm not usually successful."

"Are you plagued by your mother, too?"

"Mmm. My son. He was always the light of my life. But recently, he met this horrible girl, and everything changed." She took another swig. "My husband and I lost our son. And on the heels of it, my husband died."

"That's awful." Lena filed that away for debriefing later. -Mon-El's father is dead? I hope he knows...-

"I am so sorry, I never open up like this," Rhea said.

"Don't be silly. I started it," Lena interrupted her. -And I damn well meant to.-

"I guess since I'm sharing, I should share everything." Rhea handed Lena a small thumb drive. "These are the key concepts I withheld from the proposal."

Lena gave the woman her very best, polished to a shine, yes-I-am-interested Luthor smile, complete with dimple. "I can't wait. And I give you my word, I will not steal it."

"I trust you," Rhea said with a smile.

"You know, regardless of what happens with business, I have a feeling we're gonna be friends," Lena lied easily.

"To new friends!" They clinked their scotch glasses together. "Thank the gods I found you." Rhea said.

Lena smirked as she drank. -You will rue the day you called my Kara horrible, you nasty alien.-

\--

"She's playing right into my hands," Lena said quietly into her office phone. The custom-built landline couldn't be hacked (she paid her mother's goons on the daily to try and tap it so she could continually adapt her defenses). "Even told me about her son and his horrible girlfriend."

"Good work, Lena," J'onn replied.

"Is Kara with you? She isn't answering my texts." Lena couldn't help the worry that crept into her voice.

"She's undercover on a mission. She doesn't have her phone right now as a result," J'onn said.

"But she's okay?"

"Right as rain," J'onn assured her. "I'm monitoring the situation personally."

"Okay," Lena sighed. "I trust you." -At least, I trust that you'll keep Kara safe.-

"I would never mislead you on that front, Lena. You must know that."

"I suppose I do," Lena sighed.

"By the way, I trust you as well," J'onn said, slowly, so there would be no mistaking his words. "Do what you have to do."

"Thank you. I will."

\--

"Do you like what you see?" Rhea asked as she stepped into Lena's office.

"It's all very interesting," Lena lied, a pleasant smile on her face. "I almost forgot. I want to give you elevator access, so you can come up to this floor without an escort. Security just needs your thumbprint and they'll issue a badge."

Lena held out her alien detection device and Rhea pressed her thumb to it. Of course, it glowed red.

"Is that good?" Rhea asked smoothly.

-Time to pretend to push her away.- "I was looking through your designs and there's a small problem. It requires an element that doesn't exist on Earth. You see, we have 118, and this would be categorized at 260."

"I don't know what you mean."

"I think you do," Lena smirked.

"It was when I thanked the gods at dinner, wasn't it?" Rhea rolled her eyes.

"You're an alien. And this device just proved it."

"Red is never good on this planet."

"I don't know who you are, but I am not helping you build anything. You talk about betrayal and people hurting you and then you do it in spades. I want you out of my office. And there are several heavily armed guards coming if you have trouble finding your way out." Lena settled into the act. It was easy enough to be a Luthor, after all. She closed the door firmly after Rhea.

-I give it twelve hours, maybe less,- Lena thought to herself as she glared daggers at the door. She wished she could text Kara, so fucking much. But J'onn had said she was undercover, and that he was monitoring her. She had to trust the DEO. She had to trust Kara.

"You've done it alone all these years, Luthor," Lena murmured to herself as she walked to her bar and poured a healthy dose of Van Horne. "You can go solo for another day."

\--

The homing beacon that dropped Rhea onto her balcony later that night was a surprise, honestly. Lena had thought she'd come by the regular door again. She'd left the balcony door open in case Kara finished her undercover mission and wanted to come by.

-No such luck.- She looked behind her and stood up, folding her arms across her chest as Rhea slowly walked to the door, wearing normal Daxamite regalia. "I thought I made myself clear. Our business is done. Now get out of my office before I call security."

"I'm the one who hasn't made myself clear, Lena. And I'm sorry for that. You're right. I lied to you. I pretended to be of this world but only because I know how much your mother loathes aliens. And I presumed you'd be the same."

"That's what people do when they hear I'm a Luthor. They presume."

"Everything else I told you was the truth. Being betrayed by your own blood. There's nothing more painful. I know you understand that."

"What do you want from me?"

"I want exactly what I proposed. I want us to work together to create a transmatter portal. We have them where I come from. L Corp has already built a large-scale generator ring. We can easily adapt it for this. The portal would help your planet immensely and it would help me get home to mine."

"I don't work with people I can't trust." Lena kept her poker face perfect.

"I made a mistake. You are nothing like your mother. I see that now. Please, Lena. Don't let my one lapse in judgment keep us from doing great things."

"I'll think about it." She made sure she looked conflicted.

"That's all I can ask."

-Oh, sugarpie,- thought Lena venomously as Rhea left and she sat back down. -You have no idea how much I am like the woman who raised me.-

She looked over at her phone. -Come on, Kara. Finish fighting whichever alien asshole it is now and come by to see me.-

\--

When Kara flew to Lena's balcony, she was full of nervous energy, relief, and a whole host of other emotions she couldn't even begin to name.

"You left the door open," she said as she walked in. "And it's so late."

"J'onn said you were working undercover when I called him after you didn't answer your texts. So I just waited." Lena stood up and gladly wrapped her arms around Kara.

"Oh, Raaaoooooo," Kara exhaled. "A psycho from my childhood figured out that I'm Supergirl and kidnapped Alex to get me to break his dad out of prison."

Lena gasped and broke the hold to place her hands on Kara's shoulders and stare at her. "Oh my god!"

"She almost died but we got her back, we saved her. Me and Maggie did." Kara felt her eyes well with tears again. "But I almost lost her..."

"And that's why you weren't answering me," Lena said softly. "You were trying to figure out how to rescue her."

"I would have called," Kara whimpered. "I would have texted! I just knew you were, -are- doing the thing with Rhea and I didn't want to distract you."

"Kara, the thing with Rhea could have waited. Right now I'm playing the waiting game with her. She thinks I'm mad, I don't want to do it, but she's pretty sure my Luthor genes will predispose me to power and greed. Which, I'm giving it another two hours before I call her back and say I'll do it. I just have to finish writing up my plans." She indicated the legal pad on her desk.

"Literal writing?" Kara asked, confused. Lena was -so- into the latest technology, always.

"When dealing with advanced alien civilizations? Go low-tech," Lena laughed. "And use a courier rather than email. Perhaps one faster than a speeding bullet?" She winked.

"I'm all yours," Kara said, nodding. "Whenever you're done."

"Don't you want to go be with Alex and I'll send you a random emoji when I'm done?" Lena asked, sincerely.

"Nope. She's with Maggie, and they're probably being disgusting right now," Kara laughed.

Lena quirked a brow.

"Disgusting because it's my -sister-, not disgusting because she's -gay-," Kara fumbled. "On Krypton we didn't have this whole sexual orientation thing you guys have. Imagine my shock when I landed here and suddenly it all -mattered-."

"So...which pride flag do you wave?" Lena asked, very proud of herself for keeping her voice light after -that- particular info dump.

"Pansexual fits me best, I think," Kara replied. "Because I like who I like and I don't really take plumbing or species into account."

Lena nodded. "Species?"

"I -am- an alien," Kara smirked. "What about you? Do you have a pride flag?"

Lena smirked back. "I do. What would you guess?"

Kara laughed nervously. "But I have so little to go on! I know you had a boyfriend, but I don't know anything else..."

Lena bit her lip. -I'm a complete idiot, but.- "Don't you think there may have been a -reason- that Roulette invited me to those fight clubs beyond the fact I'm richer than Midas?" she said, coyly.

"Oh. Oh, wow...golly." Kara knew her eyes were huge.

Lena rolled her eyes and shrugged. "It was a -thing- in boarding school. Anyway, I've always felt the bisexual flag matched me the most."

"You and Roulette, huh..."

Lena smirked. She could see the boot screen scrolling behind the beautiful blues. "Anyway. I need to finish writing the plans."

Kara blinked. "Oh. Oh! Yes, the plans."

"You want to look at the blueprints now that she gave me the full versions?" Resisting the urge to giggle, Lena went to her desk and sat down again. "Just take the black remote by the television and hit the channel up or down buttons to change the view."

Kara took up the remote and immediately turned towards the TV, finally letting the blush she'd been fighting bloom across her face. -Oh my Rao. Lena likes girls. LENA LIKES GIRLS.-

She flipped through the plans on autopilot, just for something to do.

She didn't notice Lena looking at her out of the corner of her eye, knowing -exactly- what she was doing.

-Can it, Luthor,- she told herself firmly. -She's too good for you and both your families would murder you anyway. You did what you did on Earth-1 for a reason-. She sighed silently and kept writing.

When the plans were done, she ripped them off the pad neatly and stuffed them in an envelope.

Kara startled at the sound. She'd actually gotten into looking at the plans, and like Lena, she could see the evil implications. "Lena, this thing is -dangerous-."

"I know," Lena replied. "But please don't worry. I've figured out exactly what I can wire wrong or modify without her seeing it. And then the portal won't work."

"What happens when it doesn't?"

"Hopefully the President will have figured out something by then," Lena said.

Kara sighed, and then she strode over and pulled Lena into her arms again. "I know you can take care of yourself, but I'm still scared. They tried to take Mon-El by threatening innocent civilians. What if they find out you're double-crossing them?"

"Then I deal with that." Lena hugged back. "Remember, I've been training since I was four to be a cutthroat business woman and engineer who would manufacture lethal xenophobic technology. I'm not going into this blindly."

"I trust you," Kara sighed as she let go. "I'm just scared."

"And that's okay," Lena replied. "Just don't interfere unless I want you to."

Kara nodded. "I just learned that one the hard way. Alex might not have been thrust into mortal peril had I just listened to Maggie."

"When this is all over, can we have a blanket fort sleepover and you can tell me about it?"

Kara grinned. "Deal!"

"And before then, brunch Saturday? I know a place."

"Yeah, that sounds great! Just, uh." Kara looked serious for a moment.

Lena quirked a brow. "Hmm?"

"-No- kale this time. For real."

Lena scoffed and pushed away from her gently and handed her the envelope. "Take this back to headquarters for me, Supergirl."

"Right away, Miss Luthor!" Kara gave a cheeky salute, and ran off, closing the balcony door behind her.

Lena grinned after her. Then she sat back down at her desk to activate the communication channel to the Daxamite ship. "I've been thinking."

Rhea beamed down instantly, and Lena let her in, noticing that she'd changed back into the Earth suit.

-Not your best look, but I guess you can't threaten someone into being your personal shopper.- Lena put on her best business smile. "Ready to change the world?"

"You have no idea." Rhea smiled back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, that flag discussion was NOT in my outline and yet they just haaaad to have it. Useless sapphics *big shrug*
> 
> I've been able to crank out these chapters because I went down with the stomach flu on Thursday and I've just been writing on my phone while on the bathroom floor. I'm turning the corner and getting back to work tomorrow hopefully, so the next three episodes may take awhile. Sorry in advance.


	12. city of lost children

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments are a privilege, not a right. They were getting out of control so I pruned.

Winn trotted in, an envelope in his hand. "A courier brought this by. Said it's for you, J'onn."

J'onn nodded and opened it. It was handwritten.

_She has bugged every electronic communication method I have. I am working on breaking them but it's going to be awhile. Please don't ask me about anything unless it's in person and my phone is not present. Tell everyone else too.  
LL_

J'onn sighed.

"Everything okay?" Winn asked.

"No one is allowed to call or text chat to Lena until further notice unless it's innocuous," J'onn replied.

"Why not?" Kara asked, walking over.

"Is this her handwriting?" J'onn gave her the letter.

Kara looked at it, nodding. "Yes." She read it over. "Oh no."

"For her safety, we have to respect her wishes," J'onn said firmly. "Unless the letter contains a code otherwise."

Kara shook her head. "Not anything we hammered out together."

"Then, unless it's about game night, no one talks to Lena unless it's in person. Are we clear?"

Kara sighed. "As crystal."

\--

"I mean, I love him. I do. I...I love him. But come on. JT has got to be the only one holding up the reunion right now," Kara complained.

"Oh, obviously," Lena replied quickly. "Here, but let me ask you this, right? Would you rather have an NSync reunion or JT and Britney back together?" She smiled, knowing the answer would be dramatic.

"Ugh! My OTP. That's an impossible question to answer, and you are cruel for asking," Kara said.

"Yeah, well, you know, sometimes my Luthor genes just shine through."

They both laughed, knowing that for once, Lena really was joking. But they couldn't talk about anything important, because they were in public and Lena's phone was on.

"Thanks for catching lunch with me," Kara replied happily.

"Yeah, well, since I canceled on you the last three times and you said you couldn't get away, I figured you were worth the extra effort."

"Why are we both always so busy?" Kara groused. "I feel like I haven't seen you in forever."

"It's only been a few days, darling," Lena replied, smiling.

"Yeah, but when I don't get answers to my texts because you're knee-deep in R&D, it feels like forever," Kara grumbled, even as she answered Lena's smile with one of hers.

"It's just been so busy with all the new quantum entanglement theories I'm testing," Lena continued, rolling her eyes as Kara smirked back. "But I did shove everything aside for this. I have to make time for my friends, or else I won't have them!"

"When can you come over and hang out again?" Kara pouted. "Everyone missed you at Game Night this week."

Lena smiled. "Everyone misses me kicking their asses at Monopoly?"

"No, they miss us kicking their asses at Pictionary." Kara giggled. "Look, Alex and I can share a brainwave, but we still don't score as high as you and I do."

Lena smirked. "I'll see if I can get away tonight, okay? Hang out with you."

"Yay!" Kara actually clapped. "When can you come?"

"I...hmm, I don't actually know," Lena said, frowning. "Do you have things to do tonight?"

"I totally just cleared my schedule," Kara replied. "From like 7 on. You can come over whenever."

Lena smiled. "I'll bring some pizza and we can chill."

Kara grinned. "You know the way to my heart!"

And then, Lena's phone rang. "Oh. Actually, this is...this is my lab partner." She began to get up. "I'm gonna have to go, 'cause we're doing our first test today." 

Kara let herself frown with worry just for a moment, so Lena saw. "Oh, okay, it was so good to see you."

Lena bit her lip and let her expression fall for a moment in acknowledgement of Kara's before picking up her purse. -I miss you, darling.-

"Next time, lunch is on me," Kara called.

Lena flapped a hand over her shoulder as she began walking away. "As if!"

Kara laughed after her. "Bye, Lena."

\--

"Today was just our first test. You can't expect it to be perfect on the first attempt." Rhea said comfortingly.

"I quadruple checked my calculations on this, okay? The reaction of the polyatomic anions was supposed to be strong enough to spark the core of the generator." The frustration wasn't hard to conjure up for Lena, because this restaurant was not where she wanted to be, at all. But Rhea had insisted, so here they were.

"Neither of us has gotten to where we are without persistence." 

"If I can't make this work, we won't be able to power the portal that we're building. This was supposed to revolutionize the way everything was transported, eliminate famine, the need for fossil fuels. I wanted to help my planet. And get you home to yours." Lena winced inwardly. -Too much?-

"And you will. You're making advancements in science that most people on Earth could not even dream of. No one said it would be easy," Rhea soothed. Lena's vulnerable pout was giving her heart just a little twinge of sympathy.

"What if I can't make it work? What if I can't get you home?" 

"I have confidence in you, Lena. I am going to the test facility to check the progress of the portal. I know you don't believe it yet, but you are going to make this work."

Lena sighed. "My friends are getting mad at me with how much I work, so I think I'm going to go hang out tonight."

"Perfect idea," Rhea replied. "We will come at it fresh in the morning."

Lena nodded and left the table, heading to where she knew she'd feel better.

\--

Got 🍕!  
😋

Kara flew through her window moments later.

Lena was sitting on the couch watching television, glass of scotch in hand, and Kara skimmed her shoulders with warm fingertips before sitting down next to her.

Lena pointed at the bag on the kitchen island that her powered-off phone was sealed in. It could neither send nor receive any frequency whatsoever, and had been reduced to essentially a brick.

Kara nodded in response. "Cool."

"What if I'm laying it on too thick?" Lena asked immediately. "What if she catches on?"

Kara took Lena's free hand and laced their fingers together. "I don't know. But you're good at reading people, Lena. Do you see any tells?"

Lena shook her head. "No. But right now I'm pretending I don't get it, that I'm not understanding the calculations because they're alien and I'm not."

Kara nodded. "If anyone can walk this tightrope, it's you."

Lena frowned at the television. "What happened to Simmons Square?"

Kara sighed. "Something about telekinesis. A little boy is involved, and James has taken him under his wing. I tried to ask, but I got waved off and told to focus on you. Mon-El is out scanning the city with Alex, trying to keep his mind off the fact his parents want to kill us all."

Lena's eyes widened. "Oh god. I need to talk to Mon-El. Right now."

Kara frowned. "It's that urgent?"

Lena nodded quickly. "It really is. Can you get him?"

"Keep the pizza hot."

Lena had barely managed to put a slice of pizza on her plate and get a seltzer out of the fridge by the time Kara and Mon-El returned.

"Ooh, pizza!" Mon-El said immediately. "I think pizza is my favourite Earth food."

"Focus, buddy," Kara replied, poking him in the arm.

"Yeah, Kara said you had something to tell me?" Mon-El came over to the island where Lena was standing.

"I...this is -not- a good thing, Mon-El, so please..."

Kara knew that tone meant sorrow, and so she took Mon-El's hand and laced their fingers.

Mon-El frowned. "What's wrong, Lena?"

Lena sighed. "Your mother told me some things about her personal life. That her son had run off with a horrible girl, aka Kara, and then...then she said that her husband died."

Mon-El's expression was unreadable. "She told you my father died?"

Lena nodded. "She might have been using a false loss to try and bond with me, I don't know. And she didn't say how he died. But I need you to know what she said to me in case it turns out to be true."

They held eye contact for a long moment, Lena willing the Daxamite to see the truth in her eyes the way Kara always could.

Mon-El finally nodded. "Thank you for telling me."

"Do you want to stay for awhile?" Kara asked him softly. "Have some pizza with us?"

Mon-El shook his head, face still an unreadable mask. "I think I'd rather keep working. If that's okay."

Lena reached out and touched his shoulder. "I'm sorry."

He put his free hand on top of hers, squeezing slightly. "Thank you for telling me, Lena. You're a good friend."

All three of them stood there, sharing the shock and grief over the news, before Mon-El tightened his fingers around both of their hands.

"I need to go," he said softly. "I need to do something, I need to be useful."

"Be careful," Kara said immediately.

"Please," Lena added.

"You too, Lena," Mon-El replied. "My mother is -not- a good person. She probably murdered my father."

Lena nodded in understanding, and Mon-El let himself out the front door of the apartment to resume his patrol.

Kara sighed. "He'll be okay."

"Yeah," Lena sighed. Lord knew -she- got how he felt, hating your family but also grieving for them because they're your -family-... she'd had enough of that for a lifetime.

Kara got out a plate and loaded it up with pizza quietly, Lena getting her a pop out of the fridge and handing it to her.

"You know me," Kara said softly.

"Far too well sometimes, I think," Lena replied.

They curled together as tightly as they could given their food on the couch, spreading the blankets over their legs.

"Any requests?" Kara asked as she aimed the remote.

"I don't want to -think- anymore tonight," Lena said. "Is there a Netflix playlist for that?"

"Great British Bakeoff?"

"I keep hearing my employees talk about that. I've never seen it."

Kara turned her head to stare at Lena in disbelief. "I am the worst super bestie there ever has been, officially."

"Or the best, and there are only so many hours in the day when you're us," Lena countered gently as Kara queued up the first season.

"Okay, get ready to -care- way too much about bread that got baked years ago," Kara said. "And Paul Hollywood, he of the beautiful blue eyes."

"Yours are prettier," Lena volunteered after the first episode.

Kara blinked, she'd already forgotten. "My what?"

"Your eyes," Lena replied. "They're prettier than Hollywood Handshake over there."

"Aw," Kara blushed.

Lena let her head rest on Kara's shoulder, then, and they watched until midnight.

"Don't suppose I can convince you to stay," Kara said quietly as she exited the streaming program and Lena gathered her things.

Lena sighed and shook her head. "No. I have to get back at it in the lab, and you and your breakfasts are bad for punctuality."

Kara scoffed. "You love my breakfasts."

"I do," Lena replied, giving her one last warm hug, "but I've got to be evil in the morning, and pancakes just make me too good."

"You are -always- good," Kara retorted instantly. "It's my fancy syrup that makes you extra sweet."

-Sweet on you,- Lena thought ruefully. "Never in a million years would anyone guess that Supergirl blends her own breakfast syrup out of sources she probably shouldn't have access to."

"And never in a million years does anyone who's not a Superfriend or family get to have any," Kara chuckled.

"Talk soon?" Lena asked as she made her way to the door.

"Even if I have to send a carrier pigeon," Kara replied.

"Hopefully I'll break her monitoring system soon," Lena sighed. "I'm tired of not keeping you in the loop. But it's hard to work on the side when she's breathing down my neck."

"Send -me- a pigeon," Kara said. "I miss you."

"I miss you more," Lena said with a sigh as she opened the door. "Bye."

"Bye," Kara replied as cheerfully as she could.

But the second she heard Lena get in her hired car, Kara flopped back down on her couch, hiding her face in her hands.

"Oh, Rao..." she mumbled. "Help me get through this. I wish she were mine. I wish she liked me like that."

\--

Winn whistled cheerfully as he took his normal seat in the rotunda again, Nerf gun at the ready.

"Hey, buddy," Mon-El said, jogging up behind him.

"Hey!" Winn replied cordially as he made himself comfortable. He did enjoy his custom-built chair quite a bit, that was for sure. 

"Um...hey, scanning is a thing you, like...you do here, right?" Mon-El hated the stammering, but he just wasn't sure how to phrase what he needed to ask.

"Yes, yes." Winn nodded. "Here at the DEO, we scan for many things."

"So, could you, like, press a button and it would scan my parents' ship for the number of people currently on it?"

"I certainly could and I have."

"When was the last time?"

"Few days ago. We've been scanning, but not aggressively."

"Can I see how you do it?" Mon-El steeled himself.

"Sure." Winn tapped a few buttons, clicked the mouse--"Whoa. Hey. Um. Papa Bear?"

"Yes, Winn?" J'onn asked, coming up behind them.

"There's one less heat signature on board the Daxamite ship now than there was earlier this week."

"Could be they've sent someone down to investigate," J'onn said thoughtfully.

"But there's no trace of any ionic signature or anything that would indicate someone coming here from there," Winn muttered.

"No. No one did," Mon-El said, bitterly. "No one came here."

"Are you sure?" J'onn asked.

Mon-El nodded. "My mother was telling Lena the truth. The missing heat signature is my father, and he must indeed be dead."

Winn swiveled around in his chair. "Oh. Oh, no. I'm so sorry, buddy."

Mon-El managed a shrug. "He was not a good person."

"But still your father," J'onn replied. "It's normal to feel grief."

Mon-El stared at the screen for a moment longer before turning away from it. "I better get back to trying to locate any more of these...Phorians, you said?"

J'onn nodded. "Please be careful."

Mon-El knew what went unsaid. -Please, don't do anything stupid,- was what J'onn had meant.

"I will," he replied before walking off.

\--

Lena looked up at the portal with no small amount of dread before turning on the power via her tablet. -Here we go.-

Thankfully, as she expected, the trial failed and sparks shot from the apparatus. She tossed the tablet down on the nearest table with a sigh.

"Still isn't working?" Rhea asked.

"Was it me throwing it down in disgust or the sparks that gave it away?"

"Can you give us a minute?"

The scientists stepped back obediently.

"Failure is a part of the process, Lena. I told you this was going to take time."

"It's not about time. I'm just not getting it. You know, maybe we should pay a visit to Stryker Island. Get Lex Luthor to come in and save the day," Lena scoffed. -Just enough to bring up the inferiority complex.-

"You think -he- could get this working?" Rhea replied smoothly.

"Lex was the genius who was supposed to save the world. You know, I...I just thought if I could make this work, I would prove to the world and to my mother that I was as good as the golden boy. I think most of all, I just wanted to prove it to myself."

"You don't have to prove anything. You're smarter than Lex," Rhea stated firmly.

Lena scoffed at that. -No, you're actually wrong there.-

"No. I'm not saying that to make you feel better. I'm saying it as a scientist. As someone who knows." Rhea turned back to look at the portal. "But you need to stop trying to think like your brother. From what you've told me about Lex, he's a man who's concerned with power. And that's how you've been trying to fix this. Give it more power, you think it will work."

"Yeah, but it just keeps blowing." Lena sighed, trying not to make it -too- dramatic lest Rhea catch on.

"But you're -not- a person who's consumed with power. Are you? So, if you weren't trying to do what Lex would do, what would you do?"

Lena thought fast. "I'd try to find a way to increase the anion input without overloading the energy output. All while maintaining the element synthesis rate at a constant." Safe enough, and there could be more failsafes programmed in with that slant.

"Not power. Balance." Rhea smiled, and Lena smiled back before trotting off to start some new calculations.

\--

"Hey!" Mon-El called across the CatCo floor, with a half-eaten egg roll in one hand and a large bag of food in the other.

Kara looked up from her typing, surprised. "Uh-oh, what'd I miss?"

"Nononono," Mon-El hastened to clarify. "No, I just thought I'd surprise you. We've got egg rolls and pot stickers, shumai..."

"Oh!" Kara exclaimed happily as he put the bag on her desk.

"It's a veritable pu pu platter," Mon-El enthused, a bit too loudly before immediately lowering his voice. "I love saying that. Pu pu platter."

Kara laughed as she stood up and came around to face him. "Did you rip the seat off the toilet in my loft again and now you're just bringing Chinese food so you don't get in trouble?"

"That was -once-. That was -one time,-" Mon-El said as he took another bite of egg roll. "And in my defense, you can be pretty scary when it comes to enforcing bathroom etiquette."

They both had a quick laugh at that, Kara neatly plucking the remaining half of the egg roll out of his fingers and taking a bite herself.

No. I, um..." Mon-El sighed. "I had Winn check for heat signatures on my parents' ship, and there's one less than there was. So I guess she -was- telling Lena the truth."

Kara nodded, a sympathetic look on her face as she leaned back against her desk.

"I thought it would make me feel anger. But I felt, um...other...stuff. I just...I hate...I -hate- that I still care about him." Mon-El once again cursed his stammering. -Like I'm a kid all over again.-

"Hey, we can't will ourselves to not feel anything. Life doesn't work like that."

"On Daxam, that's exactly what we'd do. We'd drug ourselves, so we literally didn't feel anything."

"You're allowed to miss him. He -is- your father."

Mon-El sighed heavily. "He's gone forever. And I don't know how to feel about that."

"Which is valid. Grief isn't linear," Kara said. "You're allowed to not know."

Mon-El sighed again. "I guess so."

\--

Lena was typing away on a device keyboard, looking over at her calculations on the tablet, until she heard the slow clack of Rhea's heels coming toward her and knew she had to give an update. She pasted a smile on her face as she grabbed the tablet and stood up, turning around to look at Rhea.

"If my mother had given me pep talks like you, imagine the things I could've done." She handed Rhea the tablet.

"I'm happy to have mused you. But trust me, it isn't always easy being the parent we aspire to be." Rhea handed back the tablet, having barely glanced at it. "Shall we test it again?" 

"Let me just plug in the algorithm and fire it up," Lena replied, confident as she walked over to the right table and input the right code that it would once again fail.

Rhea hit a button on another control panel and the viewer window to the generator ring opened.

Lena swiped the correct sliders on the tablet and the generators began to turn. But this time, they didn't spark and overheat. They actually did what they were meant to do.

"Power is...running smoothly to the core. Anions are...reacting at a steady rate?" Lena was confused. -This shouldn't be happening.-

"We did it," Rhea said smoothly as she took the tablet from Lena and swiped the sliders back down. "At least, -I- did it."

Lena frowned. "What do you mean?"

\--

"Have you two found anything?" J'onn asked, strolling back into the rotunda after trying to get through to the small telekinetic currently in holding.

"We looked into the Phorian's physiology. Turns out that a major shift in atmospheric energy can cause a change in their mental state," Alex explained.

"But what causes a shift like that?" asked Mon-El.

"Okay. So, this measures electromagnetic activity around the city," Winn said, bringing up the appropriate diagrams on the big screens.

"There was a large spike around the time of the first fight on the street yesterday," Alex said as she and Winn came to lean against the briefing table with the rest of the group.

"And let me guess, another spike during the attack on CatCo today?" Kara asked with a sigh.

"Hey, good guess. But that spike was about five times the size," Winn replied.

"Have we determined what caused the spike?" J'onn asked.

"Yes. High levels of polyatomic anions released in the atmosphere," said Winn.

"Oh no. That means Lena's efforts at sabotaging Rhea's portal plans have gone wrong," Kara frowned.

"Or they're still going right, and the spikes are just enough success to keep Rhea from figuring it out," J'onn replied.

"I'm gonna call Lena," Kara said, officially concerned.

\--

Rhea produced a nasty-looking alien blaster and pressed it into Lena's back, angling up under her ribs. "Did you think I wouldn't catch on?"

Lena gasped as she felt the metal barrel hit through the flimsy material of her blouse. "Rhea, I don't..."

"I thought your clumsy attempts at sabotage were initially just due to burnout, to working too hard," Rhea accused as she locked her free arm around one of Lena's elbows and began to walk slowly, "but this last round was too, -too- pitiful. Even as I pumped you up, assured you that you were smarter than your brother... which you -are-, Lena, and you must know that."

Lena gasped again as she was thrown into a chair, Rhea locking a handcuff around her wrist and the other around the chair arm. Despite Lena trying to fight her, the yellow sun had rendered Rhea much stronger than her and able to cuff her other wrist to the chair arm. A third pair of cuffs chained the chair's spine to a metal pole of one of the containment areas, and Lena was, for all intents and purposes, helpless.

"Stay quiet or I'll tape your mouth," Rhea hissed. "Don't think I won't."

"You're a monster," Lena replied, hating the tremble she couldn't keep out of her voice.

"Tomorrow we will begin the material trials," Rhea said triumphantly. She ran the backs of her knuckles gently down one of Lena's cheeks. "Working with you has meant -so much- to me."

Lena scowled and turned away as best she could. -Only Kara can caress me like that.- "I can't say the same," she muttered.

"Whatever happens next, I want you to remember never to doubt yourself again," Rhea told her firmly. "You are a marvel, Lena. Any mother should be proud to call you daughter."

As she walked off, Lena began to panic. "Wait. Wait! What are you...what are you doing?"

Rhea stalked back over to where they had been working, and noticed that Lena's phone was ringing. The caller ID screen? Kara Danvers. She reached for the phone gleefully, walking away from the work area and Lena as quickly as she could.

\--

"Hello, Supergirl."

"Rhea?" Kara frowned.

"You sound surprised."

"Trace the call," Alex ordered.

"If you've done anything to Lena..." Kara's free hand balled into a fist, she couldn't help it.

"You'll what, lecture me?"

"We will find you!" Kara spat.

"You have no idea where I am or what I'm doing. How does it feel to be powerless?"

"If this is about Mon-El, you have to come to terms with the fact that he chose to stay here." 

"No, he made a choice to come home, to be king to his people. And we would have been happy to go, but you were too selfish to allow that." 

"What's she saying?"

Kara hit the speakerphone button, trying not to crack the screen. Lena was now in danger and it was all she could do -not- to fly off screaming until Winn triangulated that evil woman's location.

"Everything I do, I do for my people. Everything you do for yours is to bolster your broken ego. You need this planet to worship you, the last daughter of a failed world, because otherwise, your survival means nothing." Rhea was enjoying this, it was clear in her voice.

"You're delusional," Kara retorted angrily.

Rhea chuckled condescendingly. "No. On the contrary, I see everything clearly. I came here in peace, which you refused. And all of the ugliness that's transpired is because of your righteousness, Kara Zor-El. Everything that happens from now on is your doing."

Everyone in the DEO was struck dumb.

"Every city that burns, every nation that falls, for every child of Earth that cries out, 'Why is this happening?' The answer is Supergirl."

Mon-El couldn't contain himself anymore. "Kara has done nothing. Okay? This is all you!"

"Oh, of course you're there with her. The Kryptonian girl who bewitched you."

"Mother, you're..." Mon-El gathered his thoughts quickly. "You're mad at me, okay? Don't take it out on this planet. You are better than this."

"Anger has nothing to do with what I'm doing."

"Then why? Why are you still here?" Mon-El shouted.

"I'm here to wake you up, Mon-El." Rhea hung up.

"Did you manage to trace the call?" J'onn asked Winn quickly.

"No. There was too much electromagnetic interference," Winn sighed.

Kara was -livid-. "Lena could be in big trouble. She wouldn't let anyone else use her phone, ever. And we didn't hear her speaking during all that?"

Everyone shook their heads 'no'.

"We've -got- to find her," Kara snarled. "If she doesn't have her phone she's in deeper trouble than I suspected. Rao, I wish I knew where she was."

\--

Lena struggled futilely during the phone call. She'd heard the ringtone and knew Kara was calling, but without her smartwatch (which she'd taken off to "redo" some circuitry and hadn't put back on), she couldn't divert the call to her wrist.

She sighed softly. -Okay, Luthor, think. No bobby pins in your hair. No watch buckle. No jewelry.- She frowned. -Wait. Earrings.- And then, it came to her. She did have the studs in her ears, and she could work with that.

"Rhea, you bitch!" she yelled across the room. "You'll never get away with this and your son is going to destroy you!"

Rhea almost ran back over. "What was that, you ungrateful child?"

"You're a monster and a bitch," Lena snarled. "Supergirl -and- your son are going to -kill- you while I watch!"

"That's enough out of you," Rhea growled, and she went to a nearby table and snatched the large roll of tape off it.

"That's right, silence me because you can't handle the truth!" Lena challenged loudly. "You're a complete cow--mhhh!" 

Rhea smoothing a strip of solid, very sticky and matte black L Corp gaffer's tape quickly over the lower half of her face kept Lena's mouth from opening again.

"What a shame you had to start fighting me, sweet Lena," Rhea cooed. "I want you to know, no matter what, that the affection I have for you is real."

Lena grumbled and growled behind the tape as Rhea walked away confidently, picking up the control tablet as she reached the original table they'd been working from.

-Total idiot,- Lena thought to herself as she watched Rhea begin to swipe at the sliders again. -But that's right, forget me because I'm quiet now.-

\--

"We got something! A huge release of anions," Alex blurted.

"Where?" Kara asked frantically.

"San Isidro Valley."

"You got a satellite image for that?" J'onn asked.

"What is that?" Mon-El asked as he saw the readout Alex had displayed on the big screen.

"Let's go," Kara urged.

"Right on," J'onn replied.

"My mother..." Mon-El was in momentary shock at the sudden direness of the situation.

"I know this is going to be hard," Kara said to him quickly. "You don't have to do this."

"No, I have to. I just... I need to grab something first." He stared at the screen for a moment longer, summoning his courage, as Kara rushed off.

\--

Lena's lipstick made pulling the tape off the sensitive skin of her lips quick and easy. All she had to do was lean down far enough to catch one of the ends between her fingers and then straighten back up, and since it had just been applied, it came off easily enough. Letting the tape hang by a small part off the chair arm, she leaned over again to touch her ear to her hand. She only needed the front of her earring, so she simply tugged it firmly and ignored the momentary pain. Earring secured, she stuck it face-first to the tape. Then she pulled it off the chair arm and, through a lot of flexibility and using the arm as leverage, managed to press the rod of the earring carefully into the lock of the cuff, jiggle it around, and spring her hand. The other hand only took a second, and she was completely free once again.

Supergirl, Mon-El, and the Martian Manhunter crashed through the ceiling of the warehouse a second later.

-Just in time!- Lena thought as she ran towards the table, knowing Supergirl was following her movements and probably saw the chair and the cuffs.

"Turn it off!" Kara called to her.

Lena grabbed the tablet and tried swiping the sliders desperately. "I can't," she cried after a moment.

Kara marched over to the main power supply for the generator ring and ripped the conductor cord in two, which should have shut it down, but it continued to turn regardless.

"Why won't it turn off?" J'onn asked gruffly as Rhea just smirked at them.

"I don't know, she must've made it self-sustaining somehow," Lena shook her head as she kept trying to override it and failing.

"What did you -do-, Mother?" Mon-El asked.

Rhea merely raised her eyebrows at him.

"You're bringing something here," Mon-El said, confirming what they had all figured out days ago when Lena first brought the plans to the DEO.

"What?" Kara played dumb.

"You'll see," Rhea chuckled.

Kara couldn't take it anymore. She had indeed seen the chair that, from the evidence, Lena'd been cuffed to while Rhea used her phone. The strip of tape with red residue on it combined with Lena's now-muted lipstick made her -furious- as well. -No one lays a hand on my Lena!-

Kara slammed Rhea against the nearest pillar with a scream, Rhea letting out a disgusted "argh!" on impact and kicking out at J'onn sending him flying.

As the two women traded blows, Rhea threw Kara off-center back against the pillar, which sent the shelving against it toppling down right on top of Lena.

-Shit,- Lena only had time to think before her head hit the concrete with a painful crack and the world went dark.

Seeing Lena fall and most likely suffer -another- concussion made Kara -incandescent- with rage. She landed a powerful blow to Rhea's stomach, knocking her down. -I'll come back for you,- she promised Lena swiftly before flying out to the portal itself.

She tried to use her heat vision blindly into the portal, but she was met with laser weapons shooting out of it.

"You don't mess with my -family-," J'onn growled, back on his feet and ready to attack Rhea.

However, she pulled out a small device that glowed red and pressed the button while aiming it at him.

"What -is- that?" Mon-El asked.

"A White Martian gave me this."

"What are you doing?"

"The White Martians developed this technology in order to keep the Greens under their control," Rhea said slowly as she walked around her new captive. "It traps a Martian in his own mind. A never-ending nightmare. Pretty savvy if you ask me."

They both watched J'onn shapeshift into his true form, fall to his knees, and then lose his balance, falling into the floor.

Mon-El rushed over. "J'onn? J'onn!"

Unable to rouse the Martian, he looked up at his mother, getting to his feet."You've learned a lot of things about this world, Mother."

"I've had to," Rhea smirked. 

"And did you learn that we're not bulletproof here?" He raised the gun he'd detoured to retrieve back at the DEO and levelled it at his mother.

"Put the gun down, Mon-El. You don't want to hurt me."

"Shut up!" Mon-El snarled. He glanced at Lena, unconscious under a pile of supplies and what had to be heavy shelving. -Hold on, Lena. I'll make it right.-

"The Kryptonian girl was right. You are a hero of Earth. But would a hero kill his own mother?"

Mon-El ignored her and continued to hold the gun.

"When you were a boy and I would put you to sleep at night, you used to say to me that you would always love me. And even though you've turned your back on me, I know you love me."

Mon-El cocked the gun."Where's Father?"

Rhea remained silent.

-One chance to tell me the truth, Mother. "-Where- is my -father-?!" he bellowed.

"Your father," Rhea answered with tears in her voice, was so -hurt- when you abandoned us that he took his own life."

"No," Mon-El answered flatly. "I don't believe you."

Rhea took a chance and wrapped both her hands around the gun barrel. "Mon-El, you are -not- going to kill me. Whatever you think of me, I'm still your mother."

Mon-El squeezed the trigger, steeling himself to do what he knew was necessary.

"Don't do it, Mon-El," came Winn's voice softly over the comms. "Figure out what she wants first."

Mon-El grimaced, but relaxed his trigger finger and allowed Rhea to lower the gun, breaking eye contact with her.

Mechanical beeping broke the silence, and Rhea turned to the machine that was making the noise.

"We were not the only people to escape the destruction of our planet. Thousands of Daxamites survived."

Mon-El looked up at her in disbelief.

"Hundreds of ships spread across the galaxy," Rhea continued. "They just needed a way to get here."

Supergirl managed to pick herself up off the ground in time to watch hundreds of ships fly over her, heading for National City.

"Agent Danvers?" asked the techie watching the anion flow while Winn was monitoring Mon-El on comms.

"Yeah," replied Alex, turning around and coming over to him.

"We have multiple bogies heading into National City." He tapped on his keyboard, trying to get a better reading.

"How many?" Alex looked at the red circles that were coming from absolutely nowhere and -multiplying-.

"Twenty-five," said the tech. "No, fifty. A hundred? Maybe more. What's happening?"

They all stared at the screen in disbelief.

Rhea smirked triumphantly. "Welcome...to New Daxam."

The homing beacon from the original Daxamite ship took Rhea, Mon-El, and Lena with it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there's your damsel-in-distress Lena for the shy person who sent in a request. ;)
> 
> And um, DUH Lena has to get kidnapped. Those dresses in the next episode remain in my canon, thank you.


	13. resist

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally saw the 100th episode. Well, the relevant bits, anyway. Oi vey. That's not how it would happen. At least, not if someone who actually gave two fucks about the Kara and Lena dynamic was writing the early reveal. Evil Kryptonite Lena, though? Ten points to the house of whoever styled her, DAMN. And ngl, I might take the Lockwood kidnapping thing for later. That post-save cuddlehug was -righteous-, imagine it with a kiss...
> 
> Anyway. Onward with season two. Not much more to go, and I'm sure you're all grateful for that.
> 
> Anything I do not explicitly rewrite here, consider it playing out onscreen as it did canonically.

Lena came to on some sort of soft surface. She was warm, and while her head hurt, nothing else did.  
She felt the gentlest of touches smoothing her hair back from her face, and she sighed. "Kara?" she murmured.

"Hello, Lena."

Lena was -instantly- awake. That was -not- Kara's voice! She gasped and sat up quickly, squirming away from the voice that she now knew was Rhea, who should be -murdered- for nonconsenual touch!

She looked around in disbelief. This definitely wasn't the warehouse in San Isidro. "Where the hell am I?" she managed to rasp. God, her head hurt. And she was wearing some Goth Queen of the Damned outfit suddenly.

"I've been taking care of you ever since Supergirl nearly killed you when she attacked our portal," Rhea said, oozing fake sincerity.

Lena curled her lip. "Supergirl tried to -stop- you. I should have stopped you. You lied to me and used me."

"I did what I had to do for my people. But I did it for you, too," Rhea replied silkily.

Lena just frowned at her. She wanted a drink. She wanted a Vicodin. She wanted both. Or a brick. Any of the three could stop the pounding inside her skull. 

"I meant what I said on the ground. You are a marvel. And I know that you are meant for bigger things, better things. This is a planet of wasted potential, and you represent the best of your race."

Lena narrowed her eyes and weighed the pros and cons of vomiting right into Rhea's lap. If the concussion that she absolutely knew she had now wasn't enough, the Nazi-esque talk certainly was.

But Rhea was guiding her up off the bed, and she went, limp and bleary from her headache.

"I'm going to make a society worthy of you. So get comfortable, Lena."

Lena stared numbly out of the window, down at the siege of her adoptive home, her fresh start, her heart...National City.

"You are where you belong, beside me, presiding over this new world that we will create...together."

Lena just stood there, wishing the floor would turn to lava and devour her.

"I'll send a servant back in to give you some medicine for your headache," Rhea cooed. "You just stay here until I call for you, my princess."

Once the door had closed behind the Daxamite queen, Lena threw herself onto the bed, the sudden rush making her head pound unbearably. The nausea threatened to overwhelm her far too quickly and she rolled into the fetal position defensively.

She retched, and tried to make it off the bed, but a vessel was thrust into her line of sight just in time for her to empty the meager contents of her stomach into it.

"There," a soft, sweet voice said. "Would you like some water, Lena?"

Lena shook her head. "Just show me where to get it, please."

"Please lie back down," the sweet voice pleaded. "You can't fight like this."

Lena slowly rolled onto her back, groaning, eyes screwed shut.

"Here," and a small suction cup attached to Lena's forearm and injected her with god-only-knew-what.

"What did you do?" Lena managed, hoarsely.

"I gave you medicine for the headache. It should take effect shortly."

Lena breathed through the pain and nausea. But then, as she took the next breath, she felt the vice grip on her head loosening. Her stomach settled through the next breath. A moment or so later, and she was able to open her eyes.

The owner of the sweet voice had huge blue eyes just like Kara's, although her hair was brown. She appeared to be no more than Lena's age, and possibly younger.

"How's that?" the blue-eyed girl asked.

"Better," Lena sighed. "Okay, are you allowed to answer any questions about all the crap going down right now?"

"I have not been forbidden." The girl sat on the bed carefully, holding a glass of water. "Will you drink this?"

Lena arched an eyebrow. "Are you poisoning me?"

She shook her head. "No, you are to be taken care of. You are meant for greater things, they say."

"What's your name?" Lena asked.

"Dayara," the girl replied. "Servant to Queen Rhea is my current job description. And soon, I think, I will be a servant to you."

Lena huffed. "I don't have servants. I have employees."

"What is an employee?"

"I hire someone to do a job for me, and I pay them."

Dayara tilted her head. "That is what I do. I am paid with a place to live and food to eat."

"That's not enough," Lena said. "You should have...currency...to spend any way you wish."

Dayara shrugged. "What would I spend it on? There is nothing on the ship. If I need new clothing, I go to the correct door three levels down and I am given it. If I wish to craft in my downtime, I ask for the materials. If they are available, I receive them. As long as it doesn't interfere with my work, I am free to do as I like."

"Can you leave?"

Dayara scoffed. "Where would I go? The Queen has said that once we have a planet, things will be better."

Something struck Lena, then. Dayara wasn't a slave. She'd been thinking of it the way Kara had, that servants on Daxam were slaves. But both Kara and Mon-El had said that Daxamites purchased slaves. "Are you from Daxam, Dayara?"

The girl shook her head. "No. I am from Thanagar."

"How'd you end up with this group?" Lena finally took the glass and began to sip the water.

"I ran away when I was a child. I stowed away on a ship. When the crew found me, they held me captive until making a stop at Maaldoria, where I was sold to the Daxamites."

"So you -are- a slave!"

Dayara sighed. "I suppose that is the terminology, then."

Lena continued to sip her water.

"But you have been taken as well, have you not?" Dayara asked softly.

Lena sighed. "Yes. Your queen has abducted me. What did you hear?"

"Everything," Dayara replied. "I have been here since the guards carried you in. My queen ordered that I dress you how she wished, and I tried to wake you at the start, but I realized you were unconscious due to a head injury."

Lena nodded. "I think I have a concussion."

"I am sorry for doing so, but I had to undress you to put this gown on," Dayara motioned. "And I combed your hair out. The coloured powders on your face were all smeared so I took them off as well."

Lena's eyes widened, and she raised her free hand to her cheek.

"You are still very beautiful," Dayara said softly. "You did not need the powders in the first place."

"Well, thank you, Dayara," Lena whispered. Why she should be so affected by a simple compliment from a alien, she didn't know. Maybe it was the head injury.

"You may call me girl, if you'd like that better," Dayara offered. "It is what the queen calls me."

"You have a name, Dayara, and names are important," Lena said firmly. "Here on Earth, your name can carry a reputation, good or bad. It can make people love or fear you before they even meet you."

Dayara tilted her head. "Names are that important here?"

Lena sighed. "At least when it comes to mine, because my family members are basically evil."

Dayara blinked. "Oh no. And so the name Lena is bad? Would you like me to call you something else?"

Lena shook her head. "No, not Lena. My family name, Luthor. That's the bad part."

Dayara frowned. "But we have flown over buildings with that name. Schools. Hospitals. Something that said 'animal shelter'. Are these things bad?"

"They're what I've built myself to atone for my brother trying to kill one person and killing many, many innocent others while doing so." Lena shook her head. "That's why I have to get out of here, your queen is attacking my people and I have to go help!"

A low sound chimed, and Dayara whirled around to look at a panel where a light was flashing. "You are being summoned," she said.

"Do you have any shoes for me?" Lena asked. "I don't want to walk around here barefoot."

\--

Feeling better now that she had heels on, Lena made her way to the bridge with Dayara next to her, the Thanagarian fading back against the wall as Lena stalked over.

"Ah, my son. The Prince, and his beautiful, brilliant bride-to-be. Finally, all is right with our worlds." 

"I'm insane to even try to get through to you, Mother, but here goes. Lena and I are not getting married," Mon-El snarled.

"You can make this easy, or you can make this hard. But there will be a wedding, and you will produce an heir--"

"Did you not hear us? We are not getting married and we are -certainly- not giving you an heir," Lena snapped.

"She doesn't need us for anything. She just needs our genetic materials. Daxamites can generate a child using just locks of hair," Mon-El said bitterly.

"Which I collected while you slept. My son knows me well. I hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. So the wedding will legitimize your union in the eyes of the Daxamite people. We'll have a formal ceremony." 

"You're insane if you think I'm going through this pageant for you," Lena replied coldly.

"Yes, you've made your feelings for me abundantly clear, Lena. I don't expect you to do it for me. But there are people you do care for."

"Wait..." Lena walked over to the map that had just flickered up on the screen. "Wait, what is that?" 

"The Luthor Family Children's Hospital, of course. It's one of the things I've always liked about you, Lena, that you do more with your money and power than just live lavishly. You care about the little people."

Dayara swallowed hard as she realized what her queen was doing. -She's going to threaten Lena and the prince with the murder of everyone inside the hospital!-

"The two of you -will- get married, and after that you can spend the rest of your days rotting in a cell for all I care. The question is...will you agree to the ceremony now, or only after I've murdered thousands of lives in the city below? Because, after all, the Luthor's Children's Hospital isn't the only hospital in town." 

Lena closed her eyes in defeat. "Fine."

Mon-El capitulated as well. "We will do as you ask."

"I know it's hard for you to see now, but in time, you will realize you made the right choice," Rhea gloated.

Lena scowled and turned away.

"Lena," Rhea snapped. "Take the servant you've been assigned and go back to your room. You will dress appropriately. Mon-El, darling, put your wedding finery on."

Lena sighed and headed for the door she came in, a guard and Dayara falling into line behind her as she left.

\--

"I need to get some air," Kara growled, heading to the back of the bar and pushing the door open.

But she wasn't alone, as she'd thought she'd be. Instead, there was a petite form perched on top of a utility control box between the dumpsters.

"Ms. Grant," Kara said, surrpised. "What're you doing out here?"

Cat turned to look at her and sighed "I just came out to look at the stars and to contemplate, but there isn't much to look at tonight. Oh, and I didn't get a chance to say it before, but thank you for saving me."

Kara chuckled. "Of course. It's been nice having you around again."

"So, who's up there?" Cat asked with her usual bluntness.

"Um," Kara tried to think fast.

"Oh, -please-. We both know that Winslow is not capable of keeping his mouth shut," Cat smirked.

-I never could keep secrets from you anyway, Ms. Grant.- "It's my good friend and my...-best- friend."

Cat scoffed. "I've never heard you speak about any -friend- with that softness in your voice, Supergirl."

Kara gasped softly. "What...what do you mean, Ms. Grant?"

Cat looked over at her. "Oh, honey. I can see your heart beating right out of your chest. It's like a hummingbird fluttering on your neck. The important things to find out are: which one of them did you date and which one do you desperately -want- to date?"

Kara laughed nervously. "You sure do ask the hard questions."

Cat smirked. "It's my calling. But I'll let it drop, my little lovebird. For now."

"Maybe the President and Alex are right. Supergirl has a responsibility to protect everyone. But all I think about is the fact that two people I love are trapped on that ship and if we destroy it..." Kara trailed off.

"Then they're destroyed, too," Cat said softly.

Kara hung her head. She'd never get to tease Mon-El again. Never get to hug him. Never get to text emojis with Lena. She'd never make a blanket fort again, how could she?

She'd never even get to try and -ask- for a kiss from the woman she'd fallen head over heels for.

"...That will break my heart," Kara managed to finish, choking up with tears at the thought of it. "I'm selfish."

"Oh, no. That's not selfish, Supergirl. That's human," Cat soothed immediately. "Do you want to know the real reason why I left National City?"

Kara sensed a story coming on, so she looked over at Cat again and nodded mutely.

"I wasn't happy. So I asked Siri, 'Where is the happiest place on Earth, Siri?' And she answered, 'Bhutan.' So, I booked my passage to the Himalayas and moved into a yurt. Now, do you have any idea what is in a yurt? Nothing. -Nothing-. Not even central air conditioning. But these people, they are -happy-."

Kara smiled softly at that.

"A child learns how to walk, they sing. A group of people come down from a hike from the mountains and they, they -dance.- And a couple, they go on their first date and they throw a damn festival! And all of a sudden, the secret to happiness just dawned on me. It's human connection."

Kara nodded. Even though she was an alien, she knew what Cat meant. Because she was very, very sure Cat knew damn well she was lecturing her erstwhile assistant Kiera.

"And I could conquer the world at CatCo, or I could twiddle my thumbs in the yurt and the loneliness would feel exactly the same, because I was missing the point. It's not about what you do. It's about who you -love-." Cat twisted around so she could face Supergirl, and took both her hands. "And there are two people that you -love- trapped in an evil spaceship. Wanting to rescue them is not selfish. It's...-everything.-"

"Yeah," Kara sighed, avoiding eye contact and gazing up at the sky. The man she loved once was up there, as well as the woman she loved now. And she had to stop denying that fact. "Yeah," she replied, more emphatically, before turning to look at Cat. "I have really missed your advice, Ms. Grant."

Cat chuckled. "And I've really missed giving it. Now, shoo. Up, up and away. No time to lose."

Kara smiled at Cat, even as her insides quailed. -Time to find Lillian.- She took off.

"That is still so...-cool,-" Cat said, amused, watching the streak disappear.

\--

Lena flung herself onto the bed as the door slid closed behind them.

"Lena," Dayara whispered.

"No, just..." Lena choked. "I'll be fine."

Dayara sat down on the bed. "That is a platitude."

Lena let a sob escape at that.

"May I...?" Dayara's hand hovered over Lena's back.

"Whatever it is, fine," Lena replied, muffled by her own arms and the pillow.

Dayara laid her hand on Lena's shoulder and smoothed carefully down her upper back, making sure she didn't tangle Lena's hair or catch anything in the complicated fabric design.

The simple touch, freely given, dynamited the dam on Lena's emotions and she broke down, almost shrieking as she tried to draw breath between sobs that threatened to rip her body apart.

"Let me hold you?" Dayara asked.

"Not your problem," Lena cried. "Not a hired servant's problem at all."

"Not a problem to begin with," Dayara soothed. "On Thanagar, we would hold one another if emotions became intense. It helped calm. It is what friends would do."

"Friends?" Lena hiccuped.

"I wish to be your friend," Dayara replied. "And to hope when you escape, you will take your friend with you."

Lena sat up and leaned against Dayara, who wrapped her arms around her in response. "If you want to leave, you'll come with me, no matter what we call each other," Lena managed to get out before needing to hiccup again. -Stupid diaphragms, why do we even have them!-

"I want to leave," Dayara said firmly. "The queen threatened sick children. I do not want to serve anyone who does such a thing."

Lena let herself cling to Dayara's shoulders, taking the momentary weakness. She would take care of her new friend, make sure she wanted for nothing. The thought bolstered her, gave her comfort.

"You do not wish to marry the prince and he does not wish to marry you. But she is forcing you both. I cannot serve someone like this."

Lena began to cry again. "I'm so scared, Dayara. My best friend was fighting your queen--"

"She is no longer -my- queen," Dayara interrupted.

"...fighting -Rhea- down there when a shelf full of supplies fell on me and knocked me out. I don't know what happened after that, but I know that if she's still alive, she's fighting and trying to come get me and Mon-El," Lena sobbed. "But we have to try and save ourselves."

"Three heads are better than two," Dayara said, rocking Lena gently. "No one will suspect me, as well."

"We will get out of here," Lena said, not letting it be a question.

Dayara sighed as she felt Lena's body finally relaxing and coming down from the crying jag. "We will. But I see no other way to effect our escape than pretending to go along with the ceremony. There's nothing down here in the living quarters."

Lena sighed and wiped her eyes. "Is it bad to say I don't want to find out what 'dress appropriately' means?"

Dayara sighed as well. "At least, I am fairly sure you look good in red."

\--

"Is this going to work?" Kara asked.

"Most likely," Henshaw replied.

"And if it doesn't?"

"Then we'll all spend a lot of time getting to know one another in the Phantom Zone," Lillian replied. "Turn it on."

Kara looked at Lillian while Cyborg Superman set up the portal. "I'm curious about something. You know my real identity. But you never told Lena. Why -is- that?"

Lillian smirked. "Eventually, she'll find out on her own. Find out that you've been lying to her all this time. And when she does? She'll hate you for it."

Kara kept a straight face. -You just keep thinking that, you horrible harpy.- "Well, it's good to know you're consistent."

"Oh, don't act so hurt," Lillian sniped. "Right now our interests are aligned, but when this is over, we go back to being enemies."

"I look forward to it," Kara snapped back.

Their conversation was interrupted by a surge of electricity as the projector activated.

"It's ready," Henshaw said.

They all stepped into the space as the projector began to turn, and vanished a moment later.

Lena stalked haughtily down the hall, Dayara skittering behind her so the guard wouldn't harry her, both of them every inch the model princess and servant.

The guard offered his arm to Lena once they were on the bridge, but she curled her lip.

"Yeah, I'm good," she sneered as she went to stand next to Mon-El. 

"Please join hands," Rhea said pompously.

Mon-El and Lena stared daggers at her, but eventually he sighed silently and held up his hand. -Can only delay so long.-

Lena looked at Rhea with disgust as she slipped her fingers into his, their hands held aloft. 

Rhea gave them a triumphant smile before continuing. "We come here today, under the eyes of the gods, to seal a bond of marriage."

Kara, Lillian, and the cyborg materialized in a random hallway of the ship, right next to a guard.

Kara promptly slugged him and he fell down easily.

Lillian smirked, and all three of them began to run down the hall.

"Though there are many stars in our celestial kingdom, only one will lead you down the correct path. Each of you have found your star," Rhea continued on with expansive hand gestures.

Lena was about to projectile vomit onto the evil bitch's shoes. From the way Mon-El's hand trembled, he felt the same. -Please, Kara, hurry...-

"And so, in my power as acting regent of the Daxamite Empire, it is my duty and my honor to proclaim you..."

Every screen on the ship suddenly switched on. Mon-El immediately dropped his hand and turned around, and Lena breathed a sigh of relief as she did the same. -Saved! Kara?-

"Good evening, National City. It's Cat Grant. Yes, I've been away for a while, but I'm -back-."

Lena couldn't keep the grin off her face. She looked over at Mon-El, who cracked his own grin. He'd never met her, but he knew she was the Cat in Catco, and that was enough.

As Cat spoke, the citizens of National City found their courage and strength and began to fight back. The occupants of the Daxamite ship just watched. Most of them were impassive, several were furious, but three of them were hiding pure joy.

Dayara wasn't quite sure what was going on, but the smile on Lena's face was enough to know that the interruption was welcome and that the woman speaking was probably a friend.

"And, Tiara Woman, if you and your little minions happen to be listening, you have come to the wrong town," Cat continued haughtily. "Yeah. I'm Cat Grant. Not goin' -anywhere-."

Winn ended the transmission on that note. "Classic!" he squeaked happily.

With the screens blanking back out, the spell was broken and Rhea returned to giving orders. "Send a squadron to the planet's surface and kill that woman."

"Yes, my Lord," said the nearest guard immediately.

"Take them to their chamber," Rhea said, waving her hand at Lena and Mon-El.

As they marched out in front of the guard, Dayara fell in next to Lena, who took her hand and squeezed it.

Elsewhere in the ship, Kara was busy dropping Daxamite guards like flies. 

"It's a shame your politics are so intractable," Lillian said once the last guard in the latest group was knocked out. "You're very useful."

"My politics?" Kara scoffed. "I thought it was my alien genetics that were the problem."

"Just take the compliment," Lillian replied snippily.

"Do your thing, R2," Kara ordered in lieu of a response.

Cyborg Superman extended an instrument from his hand and jacked into the ship's systems via the door lock.

"Any sign of them?" Kara asked. 

"There's only one other human heat signature on this ship," the cyborg replied.

"That's my girl," Lillian said, smiling.

-No, that's MY girl,- Kara growled in her head.

"I can lead us," the cyborg said.

"And I can punch," replied Kara. "Let's go."

She led the way.

A couple of hallways away from the bridge, the guard felt that Mon-El wasn't moving fast enough and gave him a not-so-friendly shove.

"As your Prince," Mon-El said, turning around in the hallway joint, "I order you to lay down your weapons and let us go."

The guard's response was to aim his gun directly at Mon-El's chest as Lena and Dayara walked back up behind him.

"Yeah, I didn't think that was going to work either," Mon-El said, laughing just a little over his shoulder before knocking the gun out of the guard's hand and punching him.

A short scuffle ensued, but Lena walked regally over to the gun that had been knocked to the floor and promptly shot the guard in the back with it.

"Thank you," Mon-El panted.

Lena's response was to take Dayara's hand and continue walking.

"Yep, this way," Mon-El said to himself, following behind them.

But their escape route was short-lived as a door slid closed right in front of them as they were running.

"It's locked," Mon-El said as he tried and failed to open it using the button.

"Break that," Lena ordered, indicating the panel that held the door lock.

"This?" Mon-El asked, pointing at it.

"-Yeah,-" Lena nodded, rolling her eyes at him as if to say -what else, you alien loon.-

Mon-El elbowed the glass multiple times til it shattered and fell away.

Both Dayara and Mon-El watched with open wonder as Lena pulled off her spiky tiara and fit it into the lock mechanism, the whole thing lighting up.

"I can see why Kara loves you," Mon-El said.

"Likewise," Lena quipped, connecting a fuse with her fingers.

The door slid open to reveal Supergirl throwing guards around.

"Hi," Mon-El said, completely nonplussed.

Supergirl looked up after punching the last guard's lights out. "Hi!"

Lena couldn't help but smile. "Hi."

Kara's grin could light up the whole of National City. "Hi, Lena!"

Lena heard a familiar throat clear, and she saw her mother behind Kara, standing with Cyborg Superman.

"You came," Lena said in disbelief. "With -her!-"

"I did," said Lillian smoothly.

"We should move," the cyborg said, and all of them turned to follow him.

They made their way quickly back to the portal, and the moment both Luthors and the cyborg stepped into the field, Lillian pressed the button that snapped them back to the Fortress and turned off the projector.

"Where did they go?" Dayara asked, scared.

"Lillian left us to die," Kara sighed. "Hello. I'm Supergirl. Don't think I got your name."

\--

"What did you do, Mother?" Lena asked in disbelief as she looked around and realized that only half the party had come back.

"Humans only, dear," Lillian replied. "Disable the projector," she told the cyborg before picking up the walkie-talkie-like comm. "Danvers, this is Lillian Luthor. We're clear of the supership and safe. Fire at will."

"With pleasure," came Alex's reply.

"Turn it back on, Mother," Lena demanded. "That girl with me, I promised to protect her!"

"I came for you. Not them," Lillian replied offhandedly as she watched the cyborg work.

"Supergirl helped you. How could you betray her?" Lena asked, although she knew that answer already.

"I put everything on the -line- to save you from them. Supergirl and Mon-El are still aliens and they'll die with their own kind. I thought you'd finally see my side," Lillian explained.

"And what about the one I promised to protect?" Lena challenged. "If you fail her, it's the Luthor name on the line."

"Who's she going to tell if she's dead, dear?"

\--

"I'm Dayara of Thanagar, servant of the royal family of Daxam," the brunette said. "Well, former servant as of today."

"Did Mother fire you?" Mon-El asked.

"No. She assigned me to Lena, and I watched her threaten the children if you didn't cooperate. So I decided to leave, and Lena was taking me with her."

"Well, now what are we gonna do?" Mon-El complained, turning to Kara.

"Lillian betraying us wasn't the biggest shock ever. So, Winn bugged Henshaw and rigged a remote so I could beam us back if she double-crossed us." Kara smiled, holding up the remote. "Hope for the best..."

"...Have Winn Schott prepare for the worst!" Mon-El finished happily.

\--

"Your stubborn pride still blinds you to the truth," Lillian told Lena, cross.

"I have the truth, trust me. You're a monster."

Suddenly the projector crackled back to life, surprising all of them.

"Why is it turning back on?" Lillian snapped.

Cyborg Superman frowned. "I don't know. I'm not in...control of myself!" Lillian crossed to him, only to have him catch her by the throat.

\--

"Let's go," Mon-El said, happily.

"I'm not going with you," Kara replied, shaking her head.

"Well, I'm not going -without- you," Mon-El argued.

"Rhea's already lost. The positron cannon is ready to fire, and you're safe. Your mother deserves to surrender gracefully," Kara said firmly, nodding.

"Please, don't do this," Mon-El begged. "You're not gonna get through to her!"

"I have to try," Kara insisted. "I'm not true to myself if I don't. As long as you, Dayara, and Lena are safe."

Mon-El sighed, nodding. He knew better than to argue with her now. He gestured to Dayara, and she took his hand as they both stepped forward.

Kara hit the button on the remote and they vanished.

"Lena!" Dayara cried immediately once she saw her.

"Dayara!" Lena held out her arms and the petite brunette folded herself into them.

Mon-El slammed his fist into Cyborg Superman, knocking his lights out and sending Lillian to the icy floor.

"Where's Supergirl?" Lena asked with fear, looking around.

"She's not coming," Mon-El sighed as he grabbed the walkie-talkie. "Alex? Alex, it's Mon-El. Lena and I are fine. Winn's device worked. But Supergirl stayed up there."

"Your time is up, Agent Danvers. The positron cannon is ready to fire. You need to use it," President Marsdin ordered.

"Alex, do you read? Supergirl stayed up there!" Mon-El yelled. 

"Madam President, I need more time," Alex begged.

"You have your orders. Now complete your mission!" the president yelled.

\--

Kara walked onto the bridge, slowly and defiantly. "It's over, Rhea. I came back to give you one last chance to do the right thing."

"How generous of you," Rhea sneered. 

"When I was a child, I could look up into the skies and see Daxam and the stars. I was told so many times how terrible a place it was, but I couldn't understand that. Because they had families, like us. People they loved. In a few minutes, this ship will be destroyed, and everyone on it. You don't want that. Save your people while you still have time."

"Touching speech, Supergirl. Sadly, wasted on the wrong audience. When my own husband opposed me, I killed him. You really think you can tug at my heartstrings? You were right about one thing though. It is over. For you."

Back on Earth, in National City, a carefully aimed blast of heat vision vaporized the fully powered-up weapon about to fire on the Daxamite ship.

"It's gone," Alex gasped. "The positron cannon is...gone."

She shared a look with Maggie. Their hearts were in their throats and relief at saving Kara warred with the sinking feeling that they might actually be doomed.

"Supergirl," Rhea drawled slowly, walking around her and flicking a blonde curl on her back. "You -really- thought you'd won. Didn't you?"

Kara looked at her, frowning. Rhea was suddenly staring past her, though, and she turned around...

...just in time to catch a steel punch to her jaw that threw her across the room. She forced herself to sit up, and stared.

"...Superman?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dayara the Thanagarian is portrayed by Lyndsy Fonseca. My headcanon, my rules. ;)


	14. nevertheless, she persisted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I wish we could have gotten Cat Grant back. Every time the script calls for Callista to dunk on her shitty husband, I fall out cackling. Ally McBeal was a part of some of my formative years, as were the glory days of Lucas and Spielberg (as an aside, Carrie's death hurts so -fucking- much when you were watching in real time for pretty much all of her career), so I -very- much appreciate the throwbacks/allusions to real life.
> 
> Unfortunately, I don't think I can move her back into Catco and still stick to the overall canon direction. I am thinking about how to keep her woven in, at least. I can admit I like the idea of Supercarp ;)
> 
> On with the show.

"I leave you alone for two minutes and not only do you get kidnapped by aliens, you start bringing them home as pets!" Lillian groused as soon as she could speak again.

"Shut up, Mother," Lena snapped, still cuddling Dayara tightly. "You should be proud. They gave her to me as a -slave-, and I decided to keep their gift when I left."

Lillian sighed and rolled her eyes. "Whatever, you can afford whatever kibble it eats. It's none of my business." She turned away.

Lena stroked Dayara's hair comfortingly. "See what I meant?" she breathed as softly as she could.

"Yeah," Dayara sighed back, not willing to let go just yet. Not only because she was scared as hell, but wherever they were, it was -cold-.

"Okay, let's go," Mon-El said. "Crazy and evil people first, because there's no way I'm gonna be responsible for anyone wrecking the Fortress in Kara and Kal's absence."

Lillian rolled her eyes and put her arms around Mon-El's shoulders as he picked up Cyborg Superman by one massive arm. They flew off a moment later.

Lena and Dayara stayed where they were, because the cold was getting to both of them quickly.

"Is he coming back for us?" Dayara asked, teeth chattering.

"Yes, but it takes a few minutes to fly all the way back to National City," Lena stammered back, shivering. "God, they used the flimsiest material they had for this stupid dress, didn't they!"

"I'm sorry, I'll try to keep you warm!"

"No," Lena replied. "Kara told me lots of things about this place, including that there -are- clothes here. I'm going to explore. Stay here."

Dayara squatted down and wrapped her arms around her knees. "O-k-kay."

Lena ran off and followed what seemed like an intuitive path until she came upon a room with a bed in it. She looked through drawers and closets until she found what looked like coats or robes. She pulled one down and held it up, rubbing the thick fabric between her fingers. From the size, it had to be Kara's. Lena smiled and pulled it over her head, settling it easily before snatching another one and running back to the main area.

Dayara was rocking back and forth, still curled up, humming as she tried to stay warm.

"Here," Lena said, holding out the robe. "They're thick."

Dayara stood up and let Lena slip the robe over her. She was so short, however, that the material pooled around her feet. Lena, being a few inches taller and in heels, had her robe just skimming the floor.

Lena giggled. "You look like you put on a giant's coat."

"Well, my feet will be warm eventually!" Dayara replied, rubbing her arms. "But it's still really cold in here."

Lena wrapped her arms around the Thanagarian, who snuggled in and tried to stop shivering. Neither of them had any idea how long they were there, but Dayara's full attention was on warming up and Lena's was keeping her warm.

When they heard movement again, Lena looked up, expecting to see Mon-El.

Instead, she and Dayara stared as Kara flew wobbily in, with Superman, Alex, and Maggie in her arms.

No sooner had she landed than she collapsed, blacking out.

"Kara!" Lena screamed, lunging for the fallen hero and collapsing on top of her.

"How are you here?" Alex asked Dayara. "Who are -you-?"

Dayara shivered. "I c-c-come in p-peace?"

\--

Alex had radioed back to National City, telling Mon-El that she had Lena and the new alien. Then, all four women managed together to lift, carry, and tug both Supers onto ice pedestals that would serve as beds in the meantime.

"What the hell happened?" Lena asked, tucking stray strands of Kara's hair behind her ears and away from her face.

"They were just wailing on each other," Maggie said, adjusting the robe that Dayara had run to get for her. "Superman was trying to kill Kara, I think. She was just trying to knock him out."

"Clearly, she succeeded," Lena said. "What do we do now?"

"We wait for them to wake up," Alex replied, pulling her robe tighter around herself. "Wow, these are nice."

"I'm going to ask Kara if I can keep this one," Lena said, looking up from her tender ministrations. "It's terribly comfy."

Alex rolled her eyes. "You see this, Sawyer? You see this uncontrollably ridiculous level of gayness?"

"It's even more painful than you were at the start," Maggie replied easily.

Lena huffed. "Leave me and my best friend alone."

"You see this, right Dayara?" Maggie murmured.

"They are smitten," Dayara whispered back. "I could see it on the ship."

"-Thank- you," Alex grumbled.

\--

Kara's eyes fluttered open. She was on her living room floor inside the blanket fort, everything was warm and sunny and absolutely nothing hurt.

As her sight focused, she let out a happy sigh, for there were gorgeous green eyes looking back at her, sweet lips curving into a smile.

Kara rolled on her back, and Lena scooted over to curl into her, head resting on her clavicle. Once settled, they both sighed happily.

"Let's just stay here a little while longer, okay?" Kara whispered. 

"How long?" Lena whispered back.

"Until tomorrow?" Kara asked, playfully.

"Okay, woman of tomorrow," Lena giggled, a hand stealing up to play with Kara's necklace. "You always wear this. It's beautiful."

"You know, it was my mother's."

Lena stopped twirling the chain around her fingers, patting it back into place gently. "Really?"

"Yeah, she gave it to me the day I left Krypton," Kara sighed. "I had just watched little Kal-El launch into space. Our world was falling apart around her, and even in the middle of that, she looked at me and smiled and said, as long as I had this, I would never be alone. She'd be with me in my dreams."

"And she always will be," Lena replied. "She lives in you, darling."

Kara sighed again. "I know we can't stay all day, but let's just stay here a little while longer, please?"

Lena propped herself on her elbow to look down at her. "But, Kara, you're not here."

"What?" Kara frowned.

"You're in the Fortress, darling."

With that, Kara woke up, stifling a scream.

"Hey, hey, you're okay," Alex cried, stepping up to her and putting soothing hands on her shoulders. 

"What happened?" Kara looked around frantically, seeing her sister, Maggie, Lena, and the new girl bundled up in all of her best formal wear. -They're safe, they're safe...- And then she realized that -Lena- was wearing her -Kryptonian robes-. Looking perfect and gorgeous as the fabric draped around her effortlessly.

The woman she loved was wearing her -clothes- from -home- and the longing was suddenly too much for Kara to handle. She squished it down with a mental slap.

"Well, you passed out and then you woke up, flew the three of us here and you passed out again," Alex replied. "Lena and her friend were still waiting for Mon-El to come back when we all showed up."

Kara got up, but not easily, and not without serious pain. "Ah!"

"Easy," Alex soothed as she put a stabilizing hand on Kara's back.

"I feel like..."

"Like you got punched by Superman?" Lena asked, dryly.

"Repeatedly," Kara replied.

The man on the other platform groaned as he regained consciousness.

"Kal!" Kara cried, running to him.

"Kara?" Kal sat up, stifling another groan. "What happened?"

Kara threw her arms around him, then sighed as she began to recap the last several hours, the rest of the group chiming in as appropriate.

"Silver Kryptonite," Kal sighed as she finished. "That's a new one. The whole time I thought I was fighting Zod. But it didn't weaken me at all."

"It might have," Kara replied quickly. 

"No," Kal said. "No, I was at full strength and you beat me."

"Well, I'm just glad we're both okay," Kara demurred. "But we need to come up with a plan to defeat Rhea or she's just going to keep coming after us." 

"The positron cannon was the only weapon we had capable of penetrating their ship's shields," Alex said.

"Is there anything that powerful here?" Lena asked.

"Not a weapon. But I might have something we can use against them." Kal replied.

"What?" Kara asked.

"Information."

Kal indicated for everyone to follow him to another room, where he punched a code into another ice plinth and revealed a 3D display of scrolling Kryptonian symbols.

"I feel like there was something in the archives about the early wars with Daxam," he said, beginning to read.

They all watched the symbols whir by.

"You know, this really would be a lot easier with Kelex," Kal remarked after a moment or two of silent reading.

"Yeah. Sorry, I kinda had to blast him," Kara replied ruefully. 

"No, no, it's fine. Just...you owe me a new robot," he replied drolly.

The machine suddenly beeped and the scrolling stopped. 

Kara looked confused. "Dakkam Ur?" 

"I've never heard of that," Lena replied.

"It's old, but it might work," said Kal.

\--

Per Lena's request, she and Dayara had been dropped back at her L Corp office (sans robes, because Kal had been looking at them so strangely that she didn't want to ask). And the first order of business was a glass of scotch, which Dayara declined as she wasn't sure how she'd react to it.

"If I have any insight into my mother, she'll be here soon with some sort of insane plan to save the Earth," Lena groused as Dayara helped her out of the complicated red Daxamite wedding dress.

"And we'll wait for her, I guess," Dayara replied, folding up the dress before dropping it onto the floor next to the couch.

"In the meantime, I've got to set you up here," Lena said as she hopped into her black slacks. "Assuming you want to stay here, that is."

Dayara looked up. "Why...why wouldn't I want to? Do you not want me?"

Lena poked her head out of the blouse. It wasn't the classiest outfit she could have put together, but she only had a few staples in her office closet. "Wait, what?" She pulled it down fully. "What makes you think I don't want you here?"

"You just asked if I wanted to stay," Dayara replied, dropping her gaze to the floor. "Last time I was asked that, it actually meant 'do you want to be dropped out into space.' The last two times, actually."

"Dayara!" Lena abandoned her necklace and ran over to catch the girl up in a hug. "I just...I wondered if you wouldn't like to go home to Thanagar, that's all."

Dayara shook her head. "It had ceased to be my home long before I ran away. I was not treated well by my parents, let's leave it at that."

"If you want to go anywhere else, Dayara, I'll gladly help get you there. But if you want to stay here with me, I'd like that very much, too." Lena squeezed her gently, then let her go.

"I want to stay with you," Dayara said firmly. "Be your employee, as you phrase it."

Lena laughed, padding back over to pick up her necklace again. "God knows I need more loyal assistants."

Dayara smiled. "Is an assistant like a servant?"

Lena thought about it as she fastened the necklace. "In a way. But compensated vastly more." She thought about what she paid Jess, which just kept rising with every bullshit event the poor woman had to put up with. But Lena would do whatever if it meant Jess stayed with her. And perhaps Dayara could be Jess's assistant.

Dayara smiled. "Then I want that."

Lena smiled back. "Okay." She slipped into her heels. "Then I guess new employee orientation starts now."

Dayara was shortly fitted with an L Corp biometric profile and ID card.

"We're just saying Smith is your last name right now," Lena said as she coded her newest employee's data into the system, "because it's very common in this country. If you find one you like better, tell me and we will change it."

"It's fine," Dayara replied. "I have never had a last name, and Smith sounds pleasing."

"Great," Lena replied. "And you'll need a government ID, Social Security number, -and- a birth certificate, but I have a friend who can get all that for you."

"Complicated," Dayara remarked, playing with the elastic string that held her ID card to the clip on her pocket.

"Oh, you need a phone," Lena said, getting up to unlock a drawer on the other side of the office.

"A phone?"

"Yes," Lena said, pulling out a thin black screen. "It's a portable communicator that just about everyone uses some form of on Earth."

Dayara watched in awe as Lena ran through the setup.

"Now," said Lena, entering some numbers on the keypad before handing it over, "hit the green button."

Dayara did as told, and promptly jumped when the thin black screen on Lena's desk lit up and began chiming.

Lena picked it up, tapped on the screen, and then held it to her ear. "Hello?"

Dayara placed her screen up to her ear. "Hello."

"Can you hear me through it?"

Dayara blinked. "Yes, I can."

"Good." Lena moved it away from her ear and tapped the screen again. "Now you have my number. Hit save contact, and then put my name in."

Dayara did as told.

"Now, tap on that bubble with three dots in it."

"Okay."

"Tap the plus, then select my name. See how the keyboard comes up? Write anything by tapping."

Dayara tapped "hello" on the pad, then hit what looked sort of like a spaceship. It made a wooshing noise, and the text moved to a bubble.

hello

Lena picked up her phone and tapped on it quickly.

Hello to you, too.

"Wow!" Dayara exclaimed. "This is great!"

"If you can't talk out loud for whatever reason, you can send a text," Lena said.

Dayara nodded. "I can see this being very addictive."

You have no idea 🙃

Dayara frowned at her phone. "You have sent a small face."

"Emojis is what they're called," Lena chuckled. "Lots of fun."

🌜Like this  
Now you're getting it! 😎

Dayara laughed. "Okay."

Lena smiled at her, then sighed as a small beeping noise came from the general direction of her desk. "Great. Mother has entered the building. Just do as I do and try not to engage her."

Dayara followed Lena's lead, sitting on the couch and watching her for any sign of emotion that she could react to.

Lena suddenly scowled and knocked the glass chess pieces down.

"That chessboard's been in the Luthor family for generations," Lillian said as she walked in the door.

"Did you come here to yell at me for not treating the family heirlooms with respect, or to blame me for what's happening outside?" Lena snapped.

Dayara carefully slid her hand from her own lap to between the two of them, her pinky finger resting on Lena's thigh. -Easy, friend. Easy.-

"How could you let that woman deceive you? I taught you to be a scientist. To question everything." 

"No, what you taught me was to doubt myself. To look for validation elsewhere, so much that I was willing to take it from the first mentor that offered it to me."

Dayara hopped up and went to refill Lena's glass. If there was one thing that she'd learnt in her brief time with the woman, it was that her mother absolutely -wrecked- her just by existing in the same room. So she carefully and quickly put what looked like a decent amount of scotch into the glass.

"I'm sorry," Lillian replied, looking upset.

Lena scoffed at that.

"I -am-, Lena." Lillian sat down where Dayara had been, forcing the younger woman to hand Lena her glass and then sit at the other end of the couch. "When you came to visit me in jail, I honestly wanted to be a better mother to you. But every time I've had the opportunity to choose you over something else? I've chosen something else."

Lena scoffed again, taking a sip of her scotch. "Well, congratulations on saying the first honest thing in your life."

Dayara watched Lena's expressions carefully. For whatever reason, she felt very connected to the youngest Luthor now, and as such, she felt the waves of anger and upset rolling off her.

"I have justified the worst behavior for the best of causes. But I was right." Lillian carefully set a few chess pieces upright again. "The threat was real. But maybe I backed the wrong child to stop it. The transmat portal you created? That was brilliant, Lena. And if you could do that with the portal, maybe you could do something with this." Lillian produced a square box that appeared to be perforated steel.

"Is that from Lex's vault?" Lena couldn't help herself, she was intrigued.

Dayara just watched. The distrust on Lena's face spoke volumes. She had loved her brother, but he was gone now, and only her mother was left.

"He created it to get rid of Superman."

"Does it work?"

"Well, you'd need to adapt it. But if you could, you would be the Luthor who saved the world."

Dayara watched the internal war raging within Lena. She wanted to help save the world, but she didn't want to be entangled with her mother again. Still, Earth was Earth, and if Dayara wanted to stay in her new home with her new friend, it had to be saved. She nodded, just a little bit, and Lena's eyes flicked to her for a moment, taking that in.

"I see your pet is working out nicely," Lillian drawled.

"Shut up, Mother," Lena replied coldly. "She is my employee now."

\--

Kara flew back to the DEO holding Maggie, Kal holding Alex right behind her.

"Kara! Are you okay?" Mon-El wrapped her in a warm hug.

"I'm so much better now," Kara said.

Winn managed to stumble on starstruck legs up to Kal. "Hi, hey. I'm sure you probably don't remember me. Hi."

"Winn Schott, resident genius of the DEO?" Kal didn't miss a beat, giving Winn a friendly pat on the shoulder "It's good to see you, buddy."

Winn overloaded. "It's good..." he managed to stammer.

"Good." Kal turned to Mon-El. "And you're the guy who's from the...other...planet?" 

"Yes, sir. Mon-El of Daxam. Though not...not like the, uh...you know, the others from Daxam. The killy ones?" Mon-El was ready to kick himself into space with all the stammering.

Kal laughed. "Well, you must be a good guy or the DEO wouldn't put up with you."

"Winn, what's happening here?" Alex asked, unwilling to delay any longer. 

"Oh, uh, yes. J'onn is still unconscious, unfortunately. But he's stable. We've cleared all Daxamite soldiers from the building," Winn rattled off.

"We might have found a way to get rid of the Daxamites in the archives at the Fortress of Solitude," Kara interjected.

"What?" Mon-El asked, suddenly dreading the answer.

"Dakkam Ur," Kara replied, turning to look at him.

"No," Mon-El said, with all the finality he could. "No, no, no. No way in -hell-."

"It's the only option we've got!" Kara argued.

An alarm began to squeal around them.

"What is it?" Alex demanded.

"The energy weapons in the Daxamite ships are charging up," the techie replied.

"They're waging another attack," Alex said.

"Winn, get me face-to-face with Rhea," Kara ordered.

\--

"The cannons are almost at full strength, my Queen," said the burly guard on the Daxamite ship as he walked by, helmet under his arm.

"Inform me the moment we are ready to fire," Rhea replied.

The screens scattered throughout the bridge gave small trilling noises and lit up.

"Queen Rhea of Daxam. I, Supergirl, champion of planet Earth, invoke the sacred rite of Dakkam Ur. To meet with you in single combat before the gods. May the fate of my people rest on the fate of my life."

"She spoke the sacred oath. How will you respond?" asked the guard nervously.

Rhea hit the transmission button. "Dakkam Ur. I accept your challenge, Supergirl. We duel in four hours. Daxam assures you it will be your last."

"Okay, what just happened?" Winn asked as the screens went dark.

"The ships' radiation signature is diminishing. Their weapons are powering down. What did you just do?" Alex asked.

"She's gonna end this," Mon-El said, trying to keep the fear and sadness out of his voice. His mother and the best friend he'd ever had were about to duel to the death, and he was very sure his mother would engage in some cheating tactics or other underhandedness to secure her win. And he was -helpless- to prevent it.

\--

"You just invoked a trial by combat created by barbarians! It's been around since we crawled out of the caves on Daxam with rocks and sticks!" Mon-El yelled as he and Kara walked down the DEO hall. He was angry, and scared, and hurt, and a whole bunch of other bad emotions that he didn't want to feel, didn't know how to process.

"If I win, she goes. They all go. They are bound by ancient law to leave this planet in peace. She's not gonna win," Kara replied, stopping inside one of the training rooms.

"But what if she does? Do you know what it will happen? You'll have to stand by and watch her walk this planet, trampling everyone underfoot!" Mon-El didn't like that he was getting so upset, but if he didn't, it threatened to swallow him whole.

"I just have to beat her," Kara said firmly. "And I will."

"Why not Superman? Isn't this his fight, too?" Mon-El was grasping at straws and he knew it.

"It's everyone's fight. But Kara just defeated me. She's the champion of Earth," Kal replied quietly.

"I don't have time for you to be afraid. I need you strong," Kara said quietly.

Mon-El frowned, then let out a shaky sigh. "Kara. You're the best friend I've ever had, and I love you. I know how my mother works, and I can't help but be afraid." He hung his head.

Kara flung her arms around him. "Mon-El, you just handled something emotionally heavy like an adult. I'm so proud of you."

He wrapped his arms around her in response. "I'm trying to be better. Better than them."

"You already are," she replied. "And I will fight, and I will win. You have to trust me."

Mon-El sighed as they both pulled away from the hug. "It's not you. It's -her-."

\--

"It's being touted as the intergalactic fight of the century. As Supergirl and Rhea of Daxam face off in a trial by combat for the very fate of our world," the Catco reporter on the screen chattered as they watched.

"Woof. No pressure," Winn commented from his place next to Kal.

"We need to contain this," J'onn rumbled as he strode into the rotunda.

Winn turned around, saw who it was, and ran to him. "Hey! Papa Bear!"

"Easy!" Alex warned as the group descended.

"It's good to see you on your feet," Kal said, offering his hand.

"Welcome, my friend," J'onn replied, shaking the hand of steel. 

"Should you be up and walking around?" Kara asked as she hugged him.

"You need all the help you can get. Alex told me about the offer you made. We'll get you everything you need," J'onn replied, nodding. "But for right now, -that- needs to be handled," he said, pointing at the screens. "You don't want an audience of innocent civilians when you fight Rhea."

Kara nodded.

\--

At Catco, things were tense despite the lack of employees and the refurbishments happening everywhere.

"Teschmacher, get Snapper on the line. His dispatches have no teeth," Cat ordered without looking up. "Where's the hook, where's the lede, where's the stats and where the hell is my latte? I've been typing for hours, I need caffeine, I need carbs, I need a..."

She looked up to see her ex-assistant and her cousin standing there. "...Clark Bar."

Kara cringed as she saw the look in Cat's eyes change to lust and she checked her face in her compact. It was one thing to watch her boss, mentor, and unattainable crush flirt with people. It was -quite- another to watch said mentor flirt with her family member whose -diapers- she used to change.

"And what, pray tell, brings you here?" Cat asked as she made her way from behind her desk to leaning in front of it, directly in front of Kal.

"Gosh, Ms. Grant. I just wanted to see what I could do to help," Kal said, every inch his self-effacing alter ego.

"Oh, you do love danger, don't you, Clark Kent? Yet another reason why Lois made no sense. Oh, and speaking of sense, I need you to talk some sense into your friend, James Olsen," Cat said as she moved back behind her desk.

"Ah, Jimmy?" Kal fidgeted, unsure what she would ask of him.

"He's been parading around like Darth Vader, punching out villains, and, I, for one, do not want to watch some space invaders slay him with their lifesaver."

"I think you mean 'lightsaber'," Kal corrected her quietly.

"Yeah, and Darth Vader actually punches out the good guys," Kara put in. 

"Okay, whatever. I've never seen Star Wars. Oh, and Kiera, where the hell have you been?"

Kara opened her mouth to speak but Cat waved her off.

"No, no, no. You are ostensibly employed here as a reporter. And Supergirl is out there about to have the biggest skirmish of her career and I thought maybe you want to go out there and -report?-"

"Yeah, that's actually why we're here," Kara said, sitting down in the chair in front of her and Kal doing the same with his. "So, uh, the fight between Rhea and Supergirl..."

"Go on," Cat replied in the tone Kara knew all too well. It meant -tread carefully-.

"Uh, Supergirl gave us an exclusive interview."

"In exchange for?"

"A request. She'd like you to tone down the, um...gee, how do I put this...the sensational tone that the battle's been receiving in the media," Kal replied.

"Oh, I don't know how I can do that. People are finally starting to fight. Finally starting to stand up."

"Supergirl doesn't want anyone showing up and getting hurt," Kara said.

"And I don't know anyone who cares more about the people than you do, Ms. Grant," Kal finished smoothly.

"Once again, Kansas, you're the only person who really gets me."

"I try."

"Fine. Deal," Cat said, sighing. "And what do you think, Kiera? Do you think Supergirl is ready for this?"

"She told me she is," Kara nodded.

"Well, great. Then, I put all my chips on the Girl of Steel," Cat said, locking eyes with Kara. "Now, you go out there and you tell Supergirl that we are all rooting for her."

Kara gulped. There was -no way- Cat didn't know. No way at all.

"Sure thing," Clark said. "It's good seeing you, Ms. Grant." He and Kara got up.

"Mm," Cat replied, watching him leave.

Kara, ever used to taking care of her boss, turned around to look at her.

"Oh, those big green eyes... I promise you, when he takes off those glasses, he is a tiger in bed," Cat bit her lip as she stared after him.

"Oh, God, I hope Rhea kills me," Kara muttered as she left the office. "Never needed to hear any of that."

Hey. Can you come see me at L Corp?  
Warning. It's my mother.  
But I think we can save this situation.  
Right away.

\--

"Of course, the two of you would make an entrance," Lillian snarked as Kal and Kara flew onto the L Corp balcony.

"Unfortunately, this is her on her best behavior," Lena replied, sighing.

"So what did you want?" Kal asked.

"My daughter has a way to save us," Lillian replied, ever the ice cold businesswoman.

"It's a device that my brother invented to keep humans safe while radiating the atmosphere with kryptonite. It would've made the planet uninhabitable for both of you," Lena replied as they all filed into the office to look at the unassuming box on the desk.

"Well, lucky I put him in jail before he could make it work," Kal snarked as Lena picked it up and held it, showing both Supers what it was.

"And lucky for you, I found it," Lillian replied immediately.

Kara and Lena shared a quick eyeroll.

"Mother, put the yardstick away, for fuck's sake," Lena snapped. "We don't have the time."

Kal, at least, had the decency to look ashamed, while Kara hid a giggle.

"Anyway, I've been studying this thing. And I think I can convert it to irradiate the atmosphere with lead, rather than kryptonite," Lena said.

"Just a trace amount, harmless to humans. But the atmosphere would become toxic to Daxamites. The aliens would be forced to leave. Or stay and die," Lillian said.

"All of them?" Kal asked.

"And they could never return," Lena said softly. "Even Rhea's son."

"Mon-El would have to leave Earth," Kara said.

Lena nodded. "Unfortunately. You see my dilemma. As I told Mother, he's my friend too."

"And if it comes down to one person or the entire planet, which would you rather pick, Supergirl?" Lillian asked pointedly.

"Start working," was Kara's only reply.

\--

"What did Lillian want?" Alex asked as she strode up to the rotunda table.

"Lillian and Lena have a way, a fail-safe, to get rid of the Daxamites, -if- Kara doesn't beat Rhea," Kal explained.

"It's a device that will seed the Earth's atmosphere with lead. No Daxamite would survive on this planet," Kara said, looking at Mon-El.

Mon-El just stared straight ahead.

"Except for Mon-El, right?" Winn asked. 

"Mon-El might be able to survive a little longer than the others. He's been exposed to our yellow sun for a few months," Kal replied.

"Well, if it comes down to it, you use it. I won't be the reason this planet suffers," Mon-El said, looking up and holding the gaze, one by one, of everyone at the table.

"No. No, it's not going to come to that," Kara argued as he locked eyes with her. "I told Lena to start working, but I want to be very clear about something. We will not have to use that device. And I am going to beat Rhea!"

Everyone remained silent.

"Your mother's going to leave. For good," Kara assured Mon-El.

"Agent Schott, head to L Corp. Assist Lillian and Lena Luthor," J'onn ordered.

"Yeah, sure thing," Winn replied quietly, turning away from the table. He'd come to like Mon-El as a friend, especially once the ridiculous relationship with Kara had mercifully come to a close. He didn't want to do it. But he had faith in Kara.

"When you go to meet her, I'm coming, too," Mon-El said to Kara as J'onn walked off. 

"You can't fight for me," Kara said quietly, firmly. 

"But I can be with you," Mon-El argued, turning to Kal. "I know -you- probably want to go, but I..."

"No," Kal replied immediately. "You'll be a good second."

"I could use your help though, Kal," Kara said as she strode off to the training rooms. "Spar with me. And keep me on my toes until I meet her."

Kal followed obediently.

\--

Kara and Kal threw each other around, Kara finally getting enough of a chokehold on her cousin to stop his movement. "That's good, that's good!" he replied, getting her to relax and drop her arms. "You're a quick learner. I learned that move on Warworld."

Kara sighed softly.

"What is it?" Kal asked.

"I just...I feel like I'm on the brink of having everything I've ever wanted. Family, friends, a job I love. A life as a hero I never could have imagined," she said as she paced the room. "If I beat Rhea, I get to keep all of that."

She flopped down on one of the benches near the wall. "I don't know. I don't know if it's possible! I don't know if it's possible to have everything you want!"

Kal chuckled. "Well, it is. But only because you worked for it."

She looked up at him as he sat down. "Huh?"

"Whenever I fight, no matter who it's against or where it is, I'm always fighting for Lois. I fight with her right here," Kal said, tapping his chest. "The people we love, they're another secret superpower. Keep her with you."

Kara frowned. "Who, Lois?"

Kal regarded her, then honest-to-Rao -giggled- at her.

Kara tilted her head, her frown deepening. "What aren't you telling me, Kal?"

Kal smirked. "What aren't -you- telling yourself?"

"You're not making sense!"

"You know which 'her' I mean. You do."

Kara blushed -hard-. "Ms...Ms. Grant?"

Kal laughed again and shook his head. "I hear they call her Ms. at the workplace, though."

Kara was very sure all the blood flow had left the rest of her body and diverted to her cheeks.

"Kara," Kal said, trying to stop laughing, "I saw the way you looked at her. You could see it from -space-!"

Kara frowned. "Really?"

"Yeah. And the way she looks back at you, that's not -friends-. And yes, her family is problematic. They scare me. Her mother scares me. Heck, -she- scares me. But maybe I need to give her a chance. If you love her."

Kara sighed. "I do. Love her, that is. But I don't think she feels the same."

"Oh, Kara." Kal hugged her, then, close and warm, imbuing her with the extra strength she needed to get through it.

"Thank you," she whispered into his shoulder.

"Of course," he whispered back before letting her go. "It's time."

\--

Kara and Mon-El flew down onto the top of the building Rhea had specified.

"I'm here for you," he told her as they walked across the roof. 

"I know," she whispered back. 

"I see you brought some moral support," Rhea said haughtily as she beamed down.

"I see you did, too," Kara replied coldly. 

"So, once you are...disposed of, I have your word that your forces will lay down arms? That the city, the nation, and the planet will be surrendered?"

"On my honor. And if I defeat you, your invasion ends. You leave. Once and for all." Kara stared her down.

Rhea turned to the guard she'd brought as her second and nodded to him. He nodded back and stepped back to the corner of the roof.

Kara nodded at Mon-El, and he did the same.

The two women faced one another. Rhea brought her right arm up, and Kara copied her.

"For the Earth," Rhea proclaimed pompously.

"For the Earth," Kara replied, softly but calmly. She could do this. She -could-.

\--

The two women traded blows, Rhea eventually knocking Kara into a utility box, and shortly thereafter down into the solid concrete of the roof.

Mon-El stared at Kara, silently asking.

Kara nodded back in reassurance before getting up and pummeling Rhea down.

Rhea looked up from her prone position and began to laugh as scout ships dropped from the main Daxamite vessel and began shooting at everything in sight around the roof.

Kara looked up in disbelief. "You agreed to the Dakkam Ur. Send them back!"

"You will dishonor yourself before the gods," Mon-El growled as he strode toward his mother.

"My gods are only concerned with my victory!" Rhea taunted.

"No. No, destroying this city is not the answer!" Kara argued.

"A city that's destroyed will need a new leader to rebuild it," Rhea replied, smirking.

Kar looked at Mon-El, seeing the torture within. His home versus his friend, his life versus his mother.

She made the decision for him. "Go. Be a hero."

He nodded and flew off.

\--

"Kara's alone," Kal said, watching the live footage before heading back to the table.

"Supergirl's handling Rhea," J'onn replied. "Right now, we need to help the people in that building." 

"We?" Kal asked as J'onn shifted into his normal Martian form.

"El mayarah," said J'onn.

"Uthaur," Kal replied, Martian for "brother".

"Alex, you're in charge," J'onn said as he and Kal strode off.

"Don't worry, I got your back," Maggie said to Alex. 

Alex swallowed hard, then nodded.

\--

"You're getting tired," Kara remarked calmly as she and Rhea circled each other.

"Finish me, then. Hit me," Rhea taunted. "Consider it a gift."

Kara ran up and threw a punch that sent Rhea to her knees. "You ready to give up now?" she called, not wanting it to end in death, not really.

But Kara had finally broken Rhea's skin, revealing glowing green.

"Hardly," Rhea scoffed as she turned around. "Because of your people, Kryptonite poisoned my entire world." She wiped the kryptonite-tainted blood from her temple onto her fingers, holding it out in front of her. "I've carried it across galaxies. It's part of me now. So go ahead. Make me -bleed.-"

Kara felt herself weakening as the kryptonite affected her, the rawness of it causing the telltale cracks across her face.

\--

Lena, Dayara, and Winn were hunched over Lena's desk, all of them hard at work on the device.

"Can I have the..." Lena gestured at the toolkit, and Dayara handed her what she thought she needed.

Lena looked at it and handed it back. "No, not this, the..."

Dayara tried another tool, but then Winn handed over a different one.

"Yeah," Lena replied, taking it "Thank you, Winn."

"You know, I'm pretty good in a crisis," Winn said. But then, something exploded, and he jumped. "Oh, god!"

"We can see that," Lillian snarked as she circled the table, irritated, for the umpteenth time.

"I don't like you," Winn sniped. Being truly mean was sadly proving impossible for him, but this? This he could do.

"It's done," Lena announced a moment later, holding her hands up in disbelief. They'd done it. They'd really done it.

"Turn it on," Lillian replied. "We can end this."

"Hey, no, no, no, wait!" Dayara tried to interfere, but Lillian gave her an ugly shove, forcing Lena to catch her before she hit the floor.

"No, you can't do that," Winn argued as Lillian swept him out of the way too.

"There's too much at stake to wait," Lillian said sharply as she grabbed it from the desk and held it aloft.

"Mother!" Lena protested as Lillian pressed what should have been the power button.

The machine, of course, did absolutely nothing.

"No," Dayara said, brokenly.

"You said it worked," Lillian said, coldly.

"Oh, it does," Lena replied with her trademark smirk as she set Dayara back upright and brushed invisible dust off her shoulders. "I just gave Supergirl the remote. Only she can turn it on."

Lillian stared as Winn and Dayara looked at each other and shared a silent giggle.

"We should call the DEO. Get them to let Supergirl know it's ready if she needs it," Lena told Winn.

\--

Mon-El was down on the ground, trying to usher as many humans as he could to safety. "Come on, get out of here. Get out of here," he urged as he picked up a bloodied young man who'd tripped and hit the pavement.

Then, the Daxamite soldiers saw him. "Get the traitor!" one of them yelled.

A few crucial minutes with hand-to-hand combat and a staff taken off one of the fallen ones, Mon-El had laid waste to four of his fellow kind.

"Sorry, not sorry," he snarked as he twirled the staff a bit, then ran off to find the next humans who needed his help.

Kal was putting out a fire with his freeze breath as J'onn ran by with an entire group of people. "Get to safety," the Martian urged.

Daxamite soldiers beamed down right in front of him, weapons at the ready, but J'onn was prepared, running towards them immediately. 

"Superman, we've got bogies above National City Hospital," Alex said over comms as she stared at the radar. 

Kal punched a Daxamite unconscious neatly. "I'm on my way."

Rhea was having her way with Kara, slamming her through the building they'd been fighting on top of and into a huge pile of debris before hauling her back up, punching another tunnel up through the building before slamming the hero into the concrete roof again.

Kal flew toward the Daxamite ship and sent several beams of heat vision at it, trying to destroy the weapons he knew were ready to fire.

Rhea looked up and back. "Get the Kryptonian!" she ordered her second, who put on his helmet and flew.

"This is worse than Myriad," Cat remarked to James as they looked out from the balcony of her Catco office. "I never thought I would say that." 

A second later, Kal and Rhea's second smashed through the side of the building. James and Cat rushed in to watch what was going on, just in time for the Daxamite to go flying through the hot pink panther sculpture.

The two of them looked on in amazement as Kal promptly threw the second across the floor and out through the window.

"Well, at least he tried," Kal remarked. 

J'onn knocked the Daxamite he was fighting with out, but another squad beamed down in the soldier's place.

J'onn readied himself, but someone else landed from above, hard enough to send a seismic wave that knocked the Daxamites down. He looked over to see his friend and love, M'gann, in Martian form.

"You came," he said, amazed.

"You called," she replied easily.

J'onn looked up to see White Martians flying overhead. "They followed you," he said with some fear. That was the last thing the city needed, yet another hostile alien race battling for dominance.

"Don't worry. They're friends," M'gann said soothingly.

The White Martians landed and began to lay waste to the Daxamites, neatly avoiding any and all humans.

Back up on the roof, Kara was still attempting to fight Rhea, even as the kryptonite made her slow, weak, and tired.

"It won't stop here. There's Star City and Metropolis. I will destroy city after city until your whole world is gone," Rhea taunted Kara, using punches as punctuation.

Kara was down, and Rhea went to deliver the killing punch, but Kara summoned her strength and stopped the fist with her open hand.

"This is -my- home," Kara replied as she used the stability of Rhea's outstretched fist to gain her footing before throwing a surprisingly powerful punch of her own. "And I'm going to protect it."

"It doesn't matter if I live or die. We'll keep coming," Rhea sneered from where she'd been thrown, indicating the ships.

Mon-El flew in to stand next to Kara once again.

"Supergirl, they've locked onto every school, hospital, and municipal building in the city. They're going to destroy everything!" Alex called over comms.

Kara looked up in despair, then at her friend. -Do I have to?- she asked with her eyes and expression.

He nodded. -You do.-

Kara pulled out the remote Lena had given her. "I'm so sorry," she said to him quietly.

"Do it, Kara," he replied back, firmly.

Rhea stared at them, not sure what was about to occur.

And Kara pressed the button.

"Finally!" Lillian snarked as the device came to life.

"Duck, you idiot," Lena told her mother as she, Winn, and Dayara scurried under the desk.

Lillian did hit the floor, just in time for the lead particles to go flying at top speed out of the broken plate-glass windows and blanket National City.

\--

Rhea began to cough, her hand flying to her throat as she realized she couldn't catch her breath. "Mon-El," she begged as the soldiers on the ground below fell down, wheezing and hacking before being recalled by their beacons. "Please..."

The ships, having pulled back all their people except for Rhea, began to exit the Earth's atmosphere as Kal watched.

Mon-El stifled a cough and looked down at his mother with absolutely no pity.

"Save me," Rhea gasped, reaching out for him. 

"Like you saved Father?"

Mon-El watched impassively as his mother turned to leaden stone and then dust, crumbling in the wind.

Only when no trace of her was left did he allow himself to give in to the coughing and the burning of his lungs, and he fell over on his hands and knees.

"No, no, Mon-El, -please-," Kara begged, dropping to her knees with him. "I'm gonna get you somewhere safe."

"It's okay," Mon-El replied as Kara rubbed his arms frantically. He'd made his peace with death awhile ago, but he pulled himself to his feet anyway.

"No, stop," Kara replied. "Alex! Do something! Tell me what to do!"

"Kara, there's nothing -to- do. The entire atmosphere's been affected," Alex replied over the comms.

"How long does he have?" Kara asked, tearing up. 

"I don't know," Alex replied sadly. "A few minutes?"

"Worth it," Mon-El replied. But the breath needed for speech mean he inhaled even more lead and bent over, wheezing.

"Stop, stop," Kara begged, trying to pull him back up by his shoulders. "Alex? Uh... Do something for me?"

\--

"You're gonna be okay," Kara insisted as she dragged Mon-El towards the pod in the center of the field.

"Kara..." Mon-El coughed. "Something I have to say..."

"I've got you," Kara said as they reached the pod. 

"Kara, please!" Mon-El insisted.

"No, no, don't talk. Just save your energy," Kara pled.

"There's something I need to say!" That came out more angry than he'd meant it to.

Kara gasped, but gave a small nod.

Mon-El took a small, painful breath. "Wherever I go...I'm gonna be better because of you. You're gonna be in my heart. And that starts with telling you the truth about us."

"Shsh," Kara replied softly as he took another coughing fit. "You don't have to say it. I know."

"But you -don't- know," Mon-El continued through his wheezing. "Music Meister...had to be kissed by someone who loves you..."

"I love you as a friend," Kara replied. "There are many types of love!"

Mon-El steadied himself on Kara's shoulders and locked gazes with her, his face etched with anguish. "-Lena- kissed you, Kara! It was romantic love that saved you, and that love was hers!"

Kara just stared at him. Her worldview took so sharp of a turn that she fell out of reality completely. "...Lena loves me too?"

Mon-El took another breath, another lungful of knives. "That's why we broke up. I couldn't go on. She made me lie about it, she made us all lie because--" he doubled over, hacking for a moment. "Because she thinks her family makes her not good enough for you!"

Kara's face was a mask of pain. "Oh no..."

"And it's so obvious you're in love with her too," Mon-El wheezed. "Promise me you'll go see her right now. That you'll fix it. You'll be...with her. She loves you."

Mon-El pressed the panel that opened the pod, almost choking on the air. "I gotta go."

Kara nodded, eyes filled with tears. "You gotta go."

She helped him into the pod, then closed it up. She placed her hand on the clear viewshield. "I love you, Mon-El," she cried.

He put his hand up to match hers, the warmth coming through just barely. "I love you too," he replied, although she couldn't hear him. But she could see him and read his lips, and that was enough. "Go to her."

Kara took to the skies after the pod vanished through the atmosphere.

\--

Lena sighed, looking around the remains of her office.

"I'm impressed," Lillian said smoothly as she cleaned up the tools and other detritus from the device on the desk. "You did -knowingly- hurt someone. Possibly even killed him. Perhaps you -are- a Luthor after all."

"I'm the best Luthor there is," Lena fired back. "Because I don't kill mindlessly. And I'm not obsessed with a Kryptonian."

Lillian smirked. -Except you are, my dear. You just don't know it.-

"What was that about Kryptonians?" Kara swept in from the balcony, dressed in her full Supergirl regalia.

"Welcome back, Supergirl," Lillian sneered. "Did you take care of your little alien boyfriend?"

"None of your concern," Kara replied coolly. "Lena, I need you to come with me."

"Okay?" Lena finished putting her spare set of mini screwdrivers and lockpicks back in her purse. "Dayara," she said, turning to the Thanagarian. "Come here for a second."

"My daughter isn't going anywhere with the likes of you, Supergirl," Lillian said haughtily.

Kara scoffed. "Yeah, she is. And if you don't want to get put back into custody, you're going to vanish from this building in..." She picked up Lena's wrist and looked at the watch on it. "Six and a half minutes. Because the DEO would like Winn back now, and he doesn't have a ride."

Lena didn't even react, she just let Kara pick her arm up as if it were normal while still packing her purse with her other hand. She -knew- that would gall her mother to no end.

Winn snorfled as Lillian glared daggers at Kara. "Fine," she finally spat. "Fine."

"This is for the Baldwin Hotel," Lena said, passing a blue key card over to Dayara. "Grand suite level, number three. Make yourself at home." She handed over a card with a small holographic logo. "This is currency that should buy you anything you want or need, including food. Text if you need anything."

Dayara nodded, sticking both cards into her pockets.

"Go with Winn," Lena told her. She looked over at the man in question. "Take care of her, okay?"

Winn nodded and saluted. "Aye aye, Miss Luthor."

Dayara went to stand next to him, hiding a smile. -They'll be busy for at least a day, I'd wager.- She looked at Winn. "Can we get a meal once we are picked up?"

Winn smiled at her. "Sure, I know a great little place. Do you like pizza?"

Kara looked to Lena. "Ready to go?"

Lena nodded. "Up, up, and away."

Scooping Lena carefully into her arms, Kara carried her out onto the balcony and flew off.

"At least you know that Supergirl would never hurt Lena," Winn said. "They're friends."

"That's what everyone said about my Lex and Superman," Lillian growled. She pulled out her phone and made a call. "It's done."

\--

Kara flew directly to her apartment, taking Lena in through the windows before setting her down inside the blanket fort, which hadn't been dismantled since the last time she'd been there.

"I'll never get used to flying," Lena said shakily as she rearranged her clothing and brushed invisible dust off. Her outfit was -not- made for flopping down on piles of bedding, but she would make it work. She pulled off her shoes and lobbed them gently out of the fort towards the nearest wall. "And I've done it twice in less than 24 hours."

Kara did her usual quick-change behind the bedroom wall before walking back out. "Sorry, but I just wanted to be done with it all."

"I'm sorry about Mon-El," Lena said softly as Kara sat down next to her, cross-legged. "I know how much you loved him."

"He loved me too. So much so that, while I was trying to get him to shut up and stuff him into the Kryptonian pod he came in, he told me a lot of things. Including one thing I need to drop a mountain on him for, once I find him again."

Lena frowned, tilting her head slightly. "What's that?"

Kara took a deep breath, held it for a moment, and then sighed. "I always knew the lips that kissed me when I was dying in Music Meister's dream were too soft to be his."

The breath wooshed out of Lena's lungs and her eyes grew huge. "I..."

"-Lena-." Kara took both of her hands and held them tightly. "Why did you tell everyone to lie?"

Lena swallowed hard.

"I love you," Kara said, looking deeply into her eyes. "I always have. Why didn't you let me in?"

"Because...b-because I'm a--"

"Luthor and I'm a Super," Kara finished for her. "Oh Rao, Lena, don't you know how -tiresome- that is?"

Lena cast her gaze downward. She couldn't make eye contact anymore.

"You have saved my life so many times since you came into it," Kara said. "I read up on Music Meister. The database in the Fortress has a file on him."

One of Kara's hands left Lena's, and Lena felt her chin being tilted up. She let it happen.

"True love breaks the spell," Kara continued softly, "but it can be any type of love. So when Mon-El and I realized we weren't any good together, I figured it was platonic love that we mistook for romantic."

Lena bit her lip, she couldn't help it.

"Please tell me the truth," Kara asked. "Please?"

Lena sighed, her eyes filling with tears. "Music Meister taunted me. He knew that I'd fallen in love with you but that I'd never tell, and so I think he set it up like that."

"Tell me what happened?" Kara let go of her chin.

Lena closed her eyes and let her head drop. Some of the tears stuck in her eyes fell onto their still-joined hands. "We saw Iris tell Barry she loved him and kiss him. Mon-El did the same thing, but it didn't bring you out. You were about to flatline no matter how many times he kissed you. I shoved him out of the way and..."

"And?" Kara whispered.

Lena opened her eyes and looked up, directly into Kara's tender gaze. "I whispered 'I love you' and kissed you. And it brought you back to us."

"Can I hold you?" Kara exhaled, overcome. "Please?"

Lena nodded and let herself be pulled into Kara's strong but gentle embrace. She nestled her head on Kara's shoulder as the blonde slowly laid them both down.

They just breathed together, Lena studying the diffusion of the tiny pool of each fairy light on the pastel flower sheet above them and Kara closing her eyes to listen to her favourite heartbeat, right next to her. As she relaxed, Lena began to stroke Kara's bicep with her fingertips, drawing tiny, feather-light patterns. Not for the first time, Kara marveled at how perfectly Lena fit in her arms.

"Lena, my love," Kara said quietly after a while, "we could have had this for so long."

"I was scared," Lena whispered. "I'm not meant for love. The thing with Jack should have showed you that. He came back into my life, and then he died."

"I'm harder to kill than the average human," Kara replied.

"My mother tries to kill you all the time, and she knows how."

"She also thinks you don't know I'm Supergirl. Don't give her too much credit."

Lena sighed. "I don't want to drag you down. I'm going to hell for my sins, I know that."

"You are -not-!" Kara snapped. "You have saved the world often enough that it cancels out!"

"I'm not meant to be happy," Lena insisted. "I don't even know what it is!"

Kara sat up, propping herself up and over Lena with one arm. "But what if you -could- be happy?"

Lena bit her lip, -hard-, as she gazed up at the woman she simply wanted to love. "What is that like?"

Kara sighed, but it was close to a sob. "Please let me kiss you."

Lena nodded, and closed her eyes as Kara claimed her lips, soft and sweet, free hand stealing up after a moment to cradle Lena's face so gently she wanted to cry again.

"Could we just be Kara and Lena?" the blonde asked when the kiss ended. "Not the other name thing."

Lena nodded. "I'd like that."

"And will you be my girlfriend?" Kara asked tenderly. "My zrhueiao?"

"Zhuuro?" Lena tried to repeat the Kryptonian word. "What does it mean?"

"Zrhueiao," Kara repeated, slower. "Because of the way matching was done on Krypton, there's no word for boyfriend, girlfriend, anything like that. Just spouse. But we do have descriptive words, like zrhueiao or zhao."

Lena tilted her head, nodding expectantly.

"Zhao means love, and zrhueiao means beautiful, lovely." Kara smiled with a touch of sadness. "It's the closest word we have to darling, honestly."

Lena gasped, she couldn't help it. She pulled Kara's head down for another kiss happily given.

"Tell me again how to say it," Lena whispered. "Til I get it right."

Kara smiled and wiped Lena's tears away with gentle thumbs. "Khap zhao rrip, Lena zrhueiao."

"Oh no, don't you go adding words," Lena chuckled. "What did you just say to me?"

"I love you, Lena darling." Kara felt her heart explode with happiness as she finally, -finally- got to say all of the right words to the right person.

Kryptonian lessons had to wait awhile after that, because Lena -needed- to kiss Kara after -that- declaration, and kissing led to Lena's hands in Kara's hair, Kara's hands running up and down Lena's back, Kara hooking Lena's leg over her hip to soft moans against her lips, and completely losing track of time until Kara's phone rang with Alex's ringtone.

"Hey," Kara said breathlessly once she'd managed to untangle herself from Lena and reach for the phone. "Everything okay?"

"I'm informing you that J'onn is taking your shift tonight. He won't say why, but he looks fairly uncomfortable. Did something happen?"

Kara looked down at Lena, lipstick completely gone and hair gloriously messy due to Kara's incessant need to run her fingers through it, blushing so prettily that Kara couldn't stand not being pressed against her anymore. "I'm with Lena." The sigh that escaped her was happy and wobbly, and she knew she'd just given it away.

"About. Damn. -Time!- Don't let me keep you. Have a good night, sis." Alex hung up.

Kara blinked at her phone. "Well, that was something."

"Is everything okay?" Lena gazed up at her dreamily, reaching a hand up to cup Kara's cheek and reassure herself that yes, this -was- happening, she'd just been handed the galaxy on a Kryptonian serving platter, and it was oh, so amazingly real.

Kara thought she would never see a more beautiful creature in the multiverse than the woman she'd just given her heart, mind, and soul to. She grinned. "Yeah. I'm not working tonight."

Lena smiled back, giggling just a bit. "I'm glad."

"Will you stay?" Kara asked, suddenly unsure of herself.

"I'd love to, zrhueiao," Lena whispered, smiling shyly.

Kara grinned, then leaned down to claim Lena's lips again.

\--

_supergirl: a softer world  
will return_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm taking a break, because transcribing fight scenes is exhausting and I have my own sandboxes to meet deadlines in. ❤️ Be excellent to yourselves and others.


	15. prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Starting off the season right, with happy Kara and happy Lena. A little fun for thisiskieran because yes, I loved their idea, even if it isn't completely platonic as they wished.
> 
> This replaces the initial daydream sequence in S3:E1. I'm very sure the song time doesn't scan to the length of the dialogue. Ssshhhhh.

♪ I remember when the sea was singing  
And all of my thoughts were ringing ♪

"Leeeeena..."

Lena smiled, not awake at all yet, but she'd know that golden voice anywhere.

"Leeeeena..."

A warm hand brushed down her arm and a kiss was dropped delicately on her neck, making her shiver a tiny bit.

♪ Crossed the ocean round the world, speeding ♪ 

"Lena, baby, come on, wake up..."

"It's Sunday," Lena grumbled, sighing and refusing to open her eyes.

♪ And nobody could catch me daydreaming ♪ 

The hand wandered further down her side, using the side slit of the pullover to rest at the soft skin of her waist.

"Don't you want brunch at our usual, zrhueiao?"

-Goodness, my girl is persistent,- Lena thought, rolling over into Kara and opening her eyes. "Later," she sighed, smiling up.

♪ But I'm daydreaming now  
Daydreaming ♪

Kara thought her heart would explode, the way Lena was drowsily regarding her, a half-smile lingering on her lips, a pale hand reaching up to caress her cheek. "Any later and they'll change to lunch, zhao."

"And would that be so awful?" Lena always felt as if she could drown in those deep blue eyes, especially when they were gazing down at her as if she were the only soul in the universe worth knowing, worth loving.

"Then they'll stop serving that great French toast that I love, and that you love stealing the fruit out of," Kara replied, trying to pout even though she couldn't stop smiling. She ran her fingers down Lena's arm again, picking a little bit at the yellow accent on her Power To The Girls pullover that Lena always loved to wear to bed.

♪ About the time we knew the lightning ♪ 

"We can order delivery, darling," Lena replied, letting her hand drop from Kara's cheek to play with the collar of her old, baggy MIT muscle tank. It was one of the few things of hers that Kara could fit into, so she loved wearing it to sleep.

"Delivery isn't the buffet," Kara pouted. "Plus it'll take an hour!"

"You are a mess, my love," Lena murmured, pulling Kara down into a soft kiss.

"I'm -your- mess, babe," Kara replied happily.

♪ Electricity screaming  
Between me and the siren ♪ 

"Honestly, darling, can't we just stay here?" Lena pouted, knowing that Kara was powerless against it. "I'd rather spend this sun-drenched Sunday morning right here."

"Hm." Kara leaned down and kissed the hollow in Lena's throat. "You -do- taste pretty good."

"Mm, do I?" Lena crossed her wrists behind Kara's neck. "Tell me more."

"Sweet," Kara replied, kissing slowly and carefully up Lena's neck. "Like a cinnamon roll."

"I notice you didn't say French toast."

"Don't tempt me, baby," Kara purred in her ear before kissing it gently. "I can carry you to the restaurant just like this."

♪ On the ocean up the waves  
Climbed them to the sky, to the stars ♪

"Hm, 'Luthor Heiress Kidnapped By Superhero For Brunch, Looked Awful' is a bit long for a headline, though."

"Try 'Brilliant Heroine Looking Perfect In Pajamas.' Millions of eyes on the headline, and sales of H&M tops and whatever yoga shorts these are would soar. Next week Catco Magazine would feature you in a spread: 'Luthor's Lounge Looks'." Kara kissed Lena's nose. "I'd get to interview you. Win win win."

"You're the only one who would ever think I'm beautiful like this," Lena replied with a self-deprecating laugh.

"Lena." Kara caught her gaze. "You're in my bed, wearing my shirt, and you've been in my arms all night. You're not just beautiful. You're -perfect-."

♪ To the limits  
And I'm daydreaming now ♪ 

Lena blushed. She didn't think she'd ever get used to belonging to Kara, let alone receiving compliments like those from her. She put her hand to her mouth, the too-long sleeve cuff hiding her fingers.

"Stop," Kara whispered, wrapping her fingers around Lena's fist. "Don't hide from me, zhao."

"It's hard..." Lena just looked up at Kara, overcome with emotion.

♪ Daydreaming ♪

"I know." Kara kissed Lena's hand, even though it was still covered in fabric. "We've both got awful scars, and we're learning one another slowly. But I love you, Lena Luthor. I always will."

"Khap zhao rrip, Kara Zor-El," Lena managed to whisper. "Uldif."

♪ About the time we knew the lightning ♪

Kara smiled, pulling Lena's hand completely down so she could kiss her deeply.

Brunch was not attended that Sunday.

♪ Oh, daydreaming, oh  
Oh, daydreaming  
Oh, daydreaming ♪

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, that shirt of Kara's we all love? Is from H&M. How do I know? I have the exact same one, lol.


	16. girl of steel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, well, well. I expected to actually have a day job and a side hustle along with the writing side hustle, not a worldwide pandemic and nothing else to do but write and write and take breaks by writing other things. My cat is ecstatic, mind--she's a needy dog trapped in a feline body. At least our pets are happy because of our social distancing?
> 
> Having to rewatch these so I can rewrite them as canonically faithful to events as possible is fucking cringetastic. Season 3 Kara was an epic douche and I remember why I stopped watching (well, that and the events of SDCC 2017--if you weren't there for it I'm not rehashing it, this isn't Questions Hour).
> 
> Just remember--if the scene is skipped over fully, it plays out in canon, unless I've rewritten other events to render it void. This will generally be Sam and Ruby scenes, I am not planning on messing with their dynamic.

Kara held herself in the sky, vigilant but relaxed. Her cape flapped in the wind, and she savoured the -silence-. The world was so loud sometimes, especially when you had superhearing. This far up, it was nothing more than background noise.

Lena suffered from migraines that were triggered by noise, as well, and Kara longed to be able to fly with her, bring her up here, hold her close and just listen to the wind and the heartbeat of the woman she loved. But Lena's fear of flying was unshakable.

"It's not you, darling," she'd said once, wistfully. "It's the height. I know I'm safe in the air as long as you're around, but I can't get rid of the phobia." Lena had chuckled ruefully. "I sometimes get anxious in my own building's elevators."

Kara had made a sympathetic noise and cuddled her closer. She understood, honestly she did. But she wanted to soar with Lena in her arms, sharing the joy and ecstasy and -quiet-.

And then, Kara heard police sirens. Multiple. Along with the quiet but elevated flutter of her sister's heartbeat. -Alex!- She opened her eyes and flew towards the sounds.

As she flew, she heard voices.

"They're dragging us!"

"Oh no..."

And then Kara flew right into the bed of the semi and let the thug pour his ammo directly into her chest, sparing Alex and Maggie any further distress.

The thug took it to the roof of the trailer, pulling out a nasty-looking electric baton.

Kara smirked. Nothing could touch her anymore.

//  
_"I know you can't promise always, my love, but please try to come home to me," Lena pleaded as she hugged Kara close before helping her lay down in the sunbed._

_"I will always come home to you," Kara sighed as best she could through her broken nose and split lip._

_"I don't want you to stop being Supergirl, I just want you to be safe," Lena whispered before kissing her forehead. "I love you."_

_"I love you too," Kara smiled up at furrowed brows and worried green eyes. "I'll always come home."_  
\\\

In the months since the Daxamite invasion and the unfortunate tangle with a strong alien who'd caused her to blow her powers out and broke her nose for extra credit, Kara had doubled down on martial arts and any form of hand to hand combat she could find a teacher for. She would practice in the red sun training rooms, and when it got too easy, she added a sliver of kryptonite around her neck, just enough to nauseate and give her vertigo. She'd promised to always come home to Lena, and she had to make good on it.

So it was a matter of moments to calmly duck and parry the baton, and she shocked the thug by grabbing it, showing no emotion or pain, and throwing him into the nearest stopped car for the police to pick up.

But the semi was out of control now, headed for an old station wagon full of civilians, and she was out of time. She jumped down and punched the truck in its grill, causing an explosion but also stopping it dead.

The young boy in the back of the station wagon just stared with wonder. As she walked towards him, he rolled down the window and exclaimed, "Supergirl, you're the best!"

She smiled at him. "Thanks. What's your name?"

"Dante," said the starstruck boy.

Kara winked. "Have a good night, Dante."

She took off a moment later.

Alex and Maggie walked up, surveying the scene and making sure everyone was safe.

"She doesn't even stop for autographs anymore," Maggie quipped.

"You know as well as I do that crime in National City never sleeps, Detective," Kara said through the DEO comms.

"And that's what makes you super," Maggie bantered.

"Keep it down, trying to work here," came Lena's voice.

"Miss Luthor, this frequency is not a police scanner," J'onn rumbled. "I don't recall authorizing you."

"If I can hack in, that's my authorization," Lena replied smoothly. "Plus, if Sawyer's in, morality dictates I'm in, too."

"I need everyone back at HQ, immediately," J'onn said. "We need to debrief."

"Enjoy your evening," Lena said. "That sounds fun."

"If you're going to listen on this frequency, Lena, you must come in for debrief as well," J'onn replied. "No exceptions."

"See you shortly."

\--

"Cool car chase. Very fast, very furious," Winn joked as Kara stalked in.

"Any luck IDing the one that got away?" Lena asked, joining Kara with a hand to her lower back.

"Oh, still running facial recognition. So far nothing."

"Anything else we can go on?" J'onn asked as he joined them.

"This is his," and Kara waved her bloody hand in Winn's direction.

Lena scrambled for a nearby specimen tray and handed it over to the nonplussed tech.

"Winn, can you send a sample up to Alex's lab? Maybe his DNA is already in the database," Kara said, holding her hand out.

"O...kay," Winn replied as he pulled on the gloves. "Well, this is new and gross."

"I should have cuffed him," Kara grumbled.

"You knocked him yards into the roof of that SUV. Not to mention saving my fiancee and I," Alex pointed out. 

"Yeah, and that truck was full of aluminum tubing," Winn added.

"Right, which doesn't really seem like much until you use it to build an illegal nuclear centrifuge," Lena said.

"This is a big win, Supergirl," J'onn told her.

"It's not a win until they're behind bars," Kara continued to grouse as Winn finished taking the swab. "Let's get this guy."

"You should go wash up, Supergirl," Lena told her, and was rewarded with a split-second brilliant grin.

As they broke, Alex trotted alongside Lena for a pace or two before catching her arm. "Hey, uh... So, tomorrow Maggie and I are gonna go do the tasting for the wedding. Three hours of hors d'oeuvres and nothing but hors d'oeuvres. Potstickers, oyster shooters, pigs in blankets. Did I mention the potstickers?"

Lena gave Alex a sideways look. "This sounds like a Kara thing. And you want me to come?"

"I want you and Kara to come, yes. Maggie and I both do." Alex bit her lip. "Please? I know she won't go without you."

Lena fixed her with a -look-. "So I'm the bait to entice your sister to spend however many hours it will take doing wedding nonsense."

Alex sputtered. "No, you have to come because you and Kara are just as much of a package deal as Maggie and I are."

Lena narrowed her eyes.

"We're all gonna meet at the bar beforehand?" Alex offered, gingerly.

Lena kept the facade up just long enough for Alex's face to begin falling before she cracked a smile and let out a guffaw.

Alex frowned, her expression turning irritated as her sister's girlfriend lost it laughing.

"Oh, I -had- you, Alex," Lena wheezed after a moment. "I got you -good-."

"You are actually the entire worst, Luthor," Alex grumbled. "Did you know that?"

"So they say," Lena replied, still giggling. "We'll see you at the bar. I'm going to take this up to the lab," she went on, swiping the specimen tray from the table.

As she walked off, J'onn and Winn moved up to stand next to Alex, all three of them watching her go.

"I have to say, she fooled me too," Winn said. "She has the menacing 24/7 thing down better than you do, Alex."

"What? I'm not like that!" Alex protested.

"Oh, come on, Alex. Your unrelenting seriousness is one of your best qualities," J'onn chuckled as he turned off toward his office, patting her on the back.

"I'm not like that," Alex called after him. "I'm not!"

\--

Morgan Edge and his bloviating was driving Lena to drink.

She'd stayed late at the DEO, helping run the DNA sample and tossing about motives and what means to an end beyond a nuclear centrifuge the criminals could have. It was thrilling to work with Kara, even if they had to maintain a very strict business relationship between Supergirl and Lena Luthor in public and at the DEO.

Only the Superfriends, Dayara, and Jess knew of the true relationship between Lena and Kara, as well. Both L Corp women had to sign NDAs in the wake of the Daxamite invasion, because Supergirl's identity had to be kept secret. Through a series of obfuscations, Lena had gotten the DEO and Winn to issue Dayara human-only papers.

"She will -not- be added to the registry," Lena snarled when J'onn raised an eyebrow. "We've seen what can happen when it falls into the wrong hands. Thanagarians are indistinguishable from humans on this planet, there's nothing the government needs to know. Human. -Only.-"

So Dayara Lynn Smith grew up in Gotham, attending various schools there, before getting her B.A. in English at National City University and being hired immediately upon graduation by L Corp as an administrative assistant.

Lena knew, deep down, that Dayara would be safe. Lillian knew about her and didn't care. Lex would care on principle, but he knew, as she did, that Thanagarians possessed no special powers he could harness. And either she or Kara could protect the petite woman from anything else the planet tried to throw at her.

-What can I throw at this asshole?- was Lena's next thought as Edge droned on. She was, once again, the only woman in the room. James Olsen, representing Catco, was the only man of colour in the room. Otherwise, it was a sea of elderly and middle-aged white men with interchangeable faces, and Lena just couldn't care.

"People like to argue that capitalists are only concerned with themselves. The truth is without big business, this city would still be in ruin from those -Daxamites.- Look at us now. Bustling. I think, we all should give ourselves a pat on the back. And, let's not forget to glad-hand the Mayor as well. Without him, none of this could have happened either."

"It's you, Morgan. It's all of you. In six months, you've done the impossible," replied the mayor.

"Let's not forget Supergirl," James blurted.

"Let's not forget Supergirl," Lena also said, almost simultaneously.

They shared a small glance with one another at that.

"Literally none of the heavy lifting could've been done without her," Lena went on, cursing herself internally for how much of her native accent slipped out.

"Yes, of course," the mayor smarmed. "Which is why I'm excited about the unveiling of the Girl of Steel statue at the waterfront." 

Edge spoke from the window. "Mayor, it's gonna take a lot more than a pretty statue to bring people down to that -slum- of a waterfront." 

"I am still working on the zoning commission, Morgan," the mayor chided gently.

Lena rolled her eyes. -Doddering old fool.-

"You'd do better to explain how my development will revitalize that neighborhood. Starting with moving out homelessness, crime...moving in opportunity and an expanded tax base," Edge enthused as he moved back to the table.

"They've all heard your sales pitch, Morgan," James snarked. "We all have."

"Yes. I'm sure that everybody here has had a chance to read CatCo's inflammatory articles about that sales pitch. Articles that have become increasingly biased ever since you took over babysitting Cat Grant's mouthpiece."

Lena couldn't hold it in any longer. "Your development would -level- the whole area. Force people from their homes, just to build high-rises for the wealthy."

"Lena," Edge replied, turning to her. "Are you spouting the CatCo company line? Really? Ah. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, considering all the good press they've been giving you lately."

"She's earned that good press by donating millions of dollars to the rebuilding efforts," James argued back quickly. 

"Hm," Edge pretended to ponder it. "That's funny because I...I thought it was restitution for what her brother did. Or was it her mother?" Edge's tone was becoming even more nasty. "Or was it -Lena-? Seeing as how she is the one who brought the aliens here in the first place."

Lena was frozen in place despite the white-hot fury running molten in her veins.

"A little bit of business advice, Lena..." Edge said from a few feet away. "Guilt is not a good business strategy."

"No?" Lena managed to say, icily.

"No." Edge's tone was now gloating.

"Neither is exploitation," Lena snapped.

That stopped Edge for just a second, but he went on. "I just want a fair hearing, that's all. I hate to think that any of you here were unfair. Hmm? Now..."

His tone returned to cordial. "My people have put together a tremendous spread, just in the office next door. Why don't we all adjourn over there and take a sample of that?"

The men began to stand up and shuffle off, happy for the free food.

"Mr. Olsen, you're welcome to join us as well," Edge said, further delineating that the man of colour was the outsider, the -other-, unwelcome. "You know, we can disagree, but still break bread together."

"You know, Edge, you are not as powerful as you think you are," Lena replied, standing and gathering her things.

"Oh, no? Then what are we doing in my office?"

She watched him go, scoffing just a little. -Your comeuppance will be sooner than you think.-

\--

Cat Grant was holding a televised White House press conference and, as per usual for her, looked absolutely -regal-.

"Ms. Grant!" shouted reporters off-screen.

"Okay, Carl," Cat said, pointing.

"Does President Marsdin believe climate change is real?"

Cat was slightly taken aback by the idiocy of the question. "Uh, yes. Yes, Carl. As a matter of fact, she -does.- She also believes that two plus two equals four and the Earth is round because the President is not a moron. Any third grader knows that global warming is the biggest threat of our time. And I'm happy to report that the intellectual capacity of our President is not inferior to that of an eight year old. Next question!"

"I knew Ms. Grant was meant for great things, but National City is gonna miss her," James said, walking with Kara down the Catco hall and watching the broadcast.

Kara sighed happily. "Best Press Secretary since Robert Gibbs."

"Yeah, she makes Gibbs look like a hall monitor," James joked.

"With Ms. Grant in D.C. and Snapper on sabbatical, it's going to be oddly congenial around here," Kara replied, rather dreamily.

"Well, we will do our best," James replied as they walked into his office where members of the staff were waiting.

James wasted no time, clapping his hands once. "Okay, guys. Look alive. All right, we're about a week away from locking up this issue, so I need to know what's going on. What's up with sports?" he asked, sitting on the edge of his desk and tossing the baseball he kept on it to the young man nearest him.

"As of last night, the Metropolis Monarchs officially have the -worst- record in baseball," the reporter said with a touch of sadness, tossing the baseball back.

"Crime," James called. 

"There's not much to cover," another reporter answered from one of the couches.

"Crime's been down 65 percent over the past six months," the sports reporter cut in.

"Supergirl has turned the entire city around pretty much single-handedly," said the crime reporter from the couch.

"Which brings me to my next point...how are you doing on that exclusive with Supergirl?" He looked directly at Kara, puzzled when she didn't answer. "Miss Danvers?"

Kara jumped. She'd been lost in a momentary daydream about the lunch with Lena she would soon have. "Oh, uh, Supergirl's been too busy to have a one-on-one conversation about the invasion," she dodged.

"The statue dedication is this weekend," James pressed, mildly.

"I'll do my best!" Kara chirped, staying present even though she wanted to be elsewhere.

"Well, you have your assignments, right? Let's get to work," James said. "Thanks."

The reporters filed out, leaving James and Kara alone in the office.

"Kara..." James asked, quietly. "Where were you just now?"

"Um..." Kara stalled. -Thinking about kissing my girlfriend being an unacceptable answer...-

"Look," James went on, "people are noticing. To the point they're starting to ask -me- what's up with you. And I know, I -know- you want to keep it quiet. I'm respecting that. We're -all- respecting it. But you can't keep flying off with her in your head during staff meetings. Or when you're talking to others."

Kara hung her head and blushed fiercely. "I'm sorry, James. I just...I'm happy for the first time in my life, honestly happy, and I guess I'm just not the best at multitasking."

Morgan Edge's voice suddenly cut through. "There's still more I can do. And touch people's lives."

James frowned. "What is this blowhard up to now?" He grabbed the remote for the largest television and turned up the volume.

"In that vein, I'd like to announce a bold new direction for my company." Edge regarded the camera for a moment before delivering his blow. "I'm buying Catco."

Kara and James just stared in incomprehension.

\--

SOS  
TURN ON YOUR TV

"In the last few years the press in this town has swung wildly to one side," Edge went on as Lena listened, feeling sick.

A second later, Kara knocked on the office door.

"Hey," Lena sighed as her girlfriend walked in and shut the door behind her. "I hate that sentient bottle of cheap cologne. Did you know?"

"No," Kara sighed, sitting down. "James was blindsided too. He thinks it's his fault for getting in Edge's face."

"You don't spend that kind of money on a grudge," Lena replied. If there was one thing she knew, it was how super rich white men thought. "Do you think the shareholders will listen to Cat?"

"Cat had to put her shares in a blind trust when she became Press Secretary. But I did some digging. Edge has been quietly buying up shares until today, when he put a tender offer to the majority shareholders."

Lena walked over to her water station as Kara talked, pouring them both glasses before turning back. "Hey, no more free press," she tried to joke. 

"You've invested in his portfolio though," Kara pressed on as she took the glass Lena handed her. "So, I figured if you could talk to him, you might be able to be persuasive?"

"Edge doesn't respect any opinions that aren't his own," Lena scoffed "Especially not a woman's."

"Lena. You helped Supergirl save the world. How hard could one stubborn sexist be?"

Lena smirked. "All right, I'll see what I can do."

Kara sighed. "Thanks, babe."

Lena pulled Kara into her arms. "We'll get through this. Somehow. I'm not going to let him do this."

"My hero," Kara replied, smiling softly. "How can I ever thank you?"

"I'm sure you can make it up to me, since you didn't stop to get lunch," Lena teased.

Kara gasped. "Oh no! I totally forgot in my haste to get here, I'll--"

Lena scoffed, then pressed her lips to Kara's gently.

Kara whimpered just a little, but relaxed into the kiss happily.

"In breaking news this morning, there are reports of a burglary in Old Town," the news reporter still talking on Lena's tablet rattled off.

Kara broke the kiss guiltily. "I...should go."

"My hero," Lena smiled. "If you hurry, you can make it back for lunch?"

Kara grinned and pulled her shirt open, racing for the balcony door.

\--

"Supergirl does know that the cops are occasionally capable of doing their jobs, right?" Maggie asked Kara sardonically.

Kara laughed. "I just make it easier for you, and you know it."

"Too easy, and good people will lose their jobs," Maggie replied sternly as she set down the glasses of beer in her hands.

Lena set down the rest of the drinks and everyone took what was theirs.

"Okay, but it's my job," Kara said with a touch of petulance.

"Maybe leave the humans to the NCPD, and you focus on the aliens?" Lena suggested as she slid her arm around Kara's waist.

Kara sighed, slipping her arm around Lena's shoulders. "Why do you always have the best ideas?"

"Because you're the best of -friends-," Winn said pointedly, raising an eyebrow.

Lena blushed and let her arm drop. He was right, of course. This was not only a working class bar, it was an -alien- bar at that. Being seen together was fine, but not this -close-. Not for the first time, she regretted agreeing to keeping their relationship a secret, even though she knew exactly why it was necessary.

Kara squeezed her, then let her arm drop as well.

"So what did everyone think of Cat's press conference?" James asked, in an attempt to liven the situation as everyone sipped their drinks silently.

"She's amazing," Maggie replied.

"She's goals," Lena sighed.

"She's still a hardass and I -love- it," Winn enthused.

"I remain impressed by Miss Grant's serenity of mind," J'onn said. "She's formidable."

Alex just shrugged. "Didn't get to see it."

"Aw, you missed an amazing, awesome job," Kara said. "You'd have loved it. Girl power and all."

Alex shrugged again, taking a long swig of her beer.

Maggie startled as her phone started beeping at her. "Cheer up, honey. It's time for that tasting!"

Kara grinned. "Yay, potstickers!"

As the group cleaned up and finished their drinks, Maggie noticed Alex's continuing glum expression and pulled her aside. "You don't wanna go to the tasting, do you?"

Alex sighed.

"What's going on with you? Why are you suddenly so down on this wedding?"

"No, I'm not down on it," Alex stammered. "I just, I...I don't know."

Maggie blinked, but as usual, kept her face a neutral mask. "Well, when you figure it out, let me know." She walked away.

"Hey," Winn said, coming up to Alex. "I think we may have tracked down the merc. I just got an alert from the DEO, everyone else is heading there now."

\--

"You were able to trace the merc with his blood?" Kara asked as she walked in, hating that because she was Supergirl, she couldn't hold Lena's hand.

Lena was a step behind her, however, heading for the rotunda table.

"Meet Robert DuBois," Winn said as they regarded the screens. "Goes by Bloodsport, which is not any sport I've ever heard of."

"What do we know about him?" J'onn asked, crossing his arms.

Winn swung into his usual seat. "Oh, you remember those bombings at City Hall, a few years ago? That was him. And, he's been AWOL ever since."

Lena walked over to Winn's station and pulled the keyboard toward her, typing quickly to bring up the record. "His file says he's ex-military."

"Where was he last stationed?" Alex asked.

"Fort Harrison," Winn sighed. "Like minutes outside the city. He worked security detail."

"He'd have knowledge of all the ins and outs of the base. He could sneak on, locate weapons, technology, anything he wanted to," Lena replied with wonder, still reading the file.

"Winn, call his CO," J'onn said. "See what they know about him."

"Okay," Winn said, pulling a tablet down.

Lena frowned at the screen in front of her. "Whoa, whoa."

"What?" Kara asked.

"The base server is down," Lena replied nervously. "This system is scrambled."

"Somebody hacked it," Winn said, peering at the screen.

"I've got this," Kara replied before vanishing.

\--

Kara had the situation at the warehouse almost under control, but then one of the injured soldiers had distracted her from going after Bloodsport.

"Help me! Please, help me," the soldier groaned, and Kara made her decision, going to him.

"It's okay, I'm here. I'm here," Kara soothed. "I've got you, I've got you."

A quick x-ray scan of his body reassured her. "You have no internal injuries," she told him. "You're gonna be okay."

And then her ears were assaulted by a very particular pulsing frequency. She cringed. -The watch! James!-

She flew at top speed to Catco, coming in through the office window and changing into her Kara Danvers appearance the second she landed. "What's wrong? Why'd you use the signal watch?"

"You didn't get that article in," James replied quietly. 

"You...you -beepered- me for a deadline?" Kara was incredulous. "That watch is for emergencies only!"

"I know what the watch is for, but this feels like an emergency. I'm worried about you, Kara. And, at a certain point in time, I have to be your boss."

Kara snarled. "No, don't ever, -ever- do that again!"

"What? Ask you to do your job?" James challenged.

"I -am- doing my job!"

"No, -Supergirl- is doing her job. Kara Danvers has been completely off the radar!" James admonished.

"Why do you care what Kara Danvers does?!" Kara growled. And then, like a speeding bullet, it hit her. "Oh," she said, nodding her head and shaking her finger at him. "I get it now. I absolutely -get- it now."

James frowned. "What?"

"You're -jealous-," Kara laughed coldly. "Kara Danvers has been off the radar because she has a -girlfriend-. And you're jealous because -we- didn't work out."

James's frown deepened. "What are you -talking- about, Kara?"

"You're jealous of Lena and all the time I spend with her!" Kara accused. "Oh, wouldn't that be rich if everyone knew. Poor Mr. Olsen, big boss man couldn't bang the bubbly blonde reporter because she's playing for the other team, so he'll abuse his power and privilege to kick her around instead."

James looked outraged. "What the -hell-, Kara!"

"And you know what? If I'm expected to adjust my -personal- life just to obey your demands under the guise of article deadlines, then maybe being a reporter isn't such a good idea."

"What...what are you saying?" James stammered.

"I'm saying I don't want my personal life to mix with my professional life as much as it does," Kara spat. "And I'm at capacity for that with the DEO."

"Kara, don't do this," James pled. He was absolutely flabbergasted at the turn this evening had taken, and the sheer whipping around the conversation had done made him dizzy.

"I quit," Kara replied venomously, turning on her heel and walking out.

"Kara..." James stood there, unable to process what just happened.

\--

"Darling," Lena said softly after they were snuggled in bed together for the night, "why are you a thundercloud?"

Kara kissed the tip of Lena's nose. "Nothing. Just annoyed about Bloodsport and how I let him get away."

"You needed to tend to the soldier," Lena replied immediately. "He was more important. And you'll get Bloodsport. We're doing all we can to figure out his game."

Kara sighed. And then, James popped up in her head, shouting at her again.

-No, you're just jealous,- Kara argued back. -You wish you had this, James. But I've seen the way you look at my Lena. Who exactly are you jealous of?-

"Crinkle," came the soft voice she loved as Lena tapped the offending facial feature.

Kara exhaled. "I'm sorry, babe." -Jealous is as jealous does, anyway.-

She rolled Lena onto her back and began to press kisses to her lips over and over and over, reveling in the feeling of Lena giggling underneath her.

"I love you," she sighed as she pulled the elastic off Lena's braid and combed it out with her fingers so she could run both hands through the silky softness.

"I love -you-," Lena sighed happily, looking up into the blue, blue comets that were hers alone.

In making love to Lena, Kara managed to forget for awhile the unfortunate events of the evening. It was so easy to get lost in Lena and so -fulfilling- to belong to her, Kara thought. This was the relationship she'd always been meant to have. As a child, she'd idolized her cousin and wanted a love of her own just as amazing as Lois. That idol worship had turned into melancholy envy as each relationship she'd tried as a teenager and an adult had fizzled or exploded for whatever reason. But now, now she didn't have to feel jealous anymore. She -had- her Lois now, the one person on Earth not related to her who -got- it, got the whole deal and not only didn't shy away, but embraced it. They were definitely a power couple, even if they had to hide it for safety purposes.

Kara hated hiding, but she knew it was safer this way. To be open with Lena ran the risk of crossing Supergirl and Kara Danvers where she could be seen, and they both figured (correctly) that if Lena were known to be dating Supergirl, attacks on her life and safety would increase, with every two-bit small town villain seeking to blackmail the Girl of Steel using the woman she loved. And Kara felt sick at the mere -thought- of Lena in trouble because of her. No, they had to stay hidden.  
But it didn't matter here and now, not in Kara's cozy apartment, not in her bed. Lena belonged to her and she belonged to Lena, they loved each other, and those facts were etched in stone. Or, rather, ice. Kara had scratched a quick "KZ❤️LL" on one of the walls of her bedroom at the Fortress, and vowed to bring Lena there again one day to see it.

"Let's have a blanket fort night again soon," Lena sighed against Kara's neck as she felt sleep overtaking her.

"First chance we get," Kara murmured drowsily.

\--

"The President did not place any listening devices in the speakers, the microwave, or his toaster, or his shoes. Or anywhere else on his premises or person. Now, sadly, I think we are so inured to the pathological lying of the Speaker that, we just don't think anything he says is crazy anymore," Cat went on as Kara looked up from her laptop and smirked at her television.

Alex let herself in a moment later, and Kara looked over.

"Oh, good. What's the update on Bloodsport? Do we know what he stole from the military base?"

"You quit?" Alex demanded.

Kara sighed. "James has been making the rounds."

"He's worried about you," Alex replied. "I'm extremely worried about you. Since when do you quit?"

"When the tyrant in power abuses it," Kara said, ice lancing through her tone. "He used his signal watch to inform me that I'd missed a deadline. That's why I flew off from the warehouse last night."

Alex's mouth dropped open in shock. "He didn't!"

"Oh, I assure you he did," Kara grumbled. "And so I quit."

Alex sighed. "You spent years working your way up to be a reporter."

"And it turned out to be a waste of time," Kara replied.

"I would love to see you tell Cat Grant that," Alex fired back.

"Cat moved on. She chose the wrong person to succeed her, it seems. Why can't I move on as well?"

"Kara, think about it this way," Alex pled. "With you at Catco, we have an angle. We have a way to control the amount of media exposure Supergirl gets, and a way to make sure the DEO doesn't get any exposure at all. It's strategy to have you there. And you help Lena, too. You've done that so many times already."

Kara sighed. This was not what she wanted to hear.

"Please, just think about it?" Alex put her hand over Kara's. "Just think about it. How you're keeping us all safe both as Supergirl and Kara Danvers."

Kara nodded. "Well, if you have an update about work, I'd love to hear it," she said after a moment.

"Bloodsport has the capability to cloak a nuke. We're thinking that he's gonna hit the statue unveiling at the waterfront. J'onn wants everyone there," Alex rattled off.

"I should hope so," Kara replied. "With Lena presenting and it being outdoors, she's in more danger than usual."

"You'll protect her," Alex said firmly. "You always do."

"And you'll all be my backup," Kara replied. It wasn't a question.

"Of course," Alex assured her. "As gross as you two are together, it'd be grosser if you weren't."

Kara scoffed. "Says the Queen of Gross with her Consort of Gross!"

They laughed together for a moment before falling silent.

"I gotta go," Alex said after a moment. "Appointment with Maggie."

"Did you reschedule the tasting?" Kara asked. "Because I still want those potstickers."

Alex laughed as she stood up and walked to the door. "I'll let you know."

Kara smiled after her as the door closed behind her.

You're coming over tonight still, right?  
Of course I am. Big day tomorrow.  
Won't it be fun with the mayor and all the stuffed shirts? 🤢🤮  
😫 Do you know how many kisses I'll need tonight to fortify me against that?  
At least 97. Probably more. 😘😘😘  
Oh you 🥰🥰🥰

\--

"Do I look all right?" Lena fretted as she slipped into her heels.

Kara looked her up and down carefully. "Did it hurt when you fell from the vending machine?"

Lena frowned, puzzled. "Excuse me?"

"Because you're a -snack-," Kara finished, smirking. 

Lena burst out giggling. "You did -not- just try that line on me."

"Did it work?" Kara grinned. She'd go anywhere, do anything, so long as she could hear Lena laugh.

"I'd say yes, but we have a statue unveiling to get to before you can have a -snack break-," Lena purred.

Kara inhaled sharply, and the next moment her hands were on Lena's waist, firmly smoothing down the black blouse with the keyhole neckline and the delicate gold pendant hanging in the gap that was driving her to absolute -distraction-. "No one stands between Supergirl and her snacks."

Lena smirked. "Except duty. And duty calls, my love."

Kara shivered happily as Lena laid the faintest kiss on her cheek, so as not to leave a trace of lipstick or mess Kara's makeup up in any way. "Then let's go, darling."

\--

"No sign of Bloodsport," Kara told J'onn as he landed beside her on the rooftop.

"It's quiet up here," J'onn remarked after a moment.

"It helps me focus," Kara replied, eyes still scanning the area. "And I have to. Lena, outside, at a large gathering? A Luthor endorsing a Super? She's at extreme risk. Plus whatever Bloodsport is up to. It's nerve-wracking."

J'onn nodded. "I know that it's difficult for you. Always was, but now that you're in a relationship with her..."

Kara nodded. "And a private one, at that. So I can't even be there as Kara Danvers, behind the scenes, helping her. I've gotta do this. And not get personal."

J'onn nodded back. "I'm sorry. You know that you and Lena have the full support of the DEO, as friends or more, no matter what."

"It's the only reason I'd let her do this."

For her own part, Lena was behind the curtain with the statue, Dayara at her elbow, trying to stay calm.

"You are stressed," Dayara told her boss and friend softly. "What would help?"

"Not having to do this," Lena muttered. "Seems like every time I try to address people outside, someone attacks."

Dayara reached up and began to rub tiny, firm circles between Lena's shoulder blades, the way she'd learned sometimes got Lena to drop them and relax just a little. "It will be okay."

"I have an awful feeling," Lena murmured, so nobody but Dayara could hear. "It's the perfect opportunity for the mercenary we've been tracking to try something. Do you have your piece?"

Dayara tucked one side of her blazer back just enough to reveal the Ruger she now carried as Lena's personal assistant. She wielded less power than Jess, but stayed closer physically. Having a firearm had been a steep learning curve for the Thanagarian, but one week in Lena's employ alone had proved its need. And Dayara could shoot to kill at both twenty yards and six inches, she'd put in hundreds of hours at the range making sure of -that-.

Lena sighed. "Just stay alert."

"I will," Dayara replied, still rubbing Lena's back. "And I am. Will you untense a small bit? You must look happy and relaxed when you go on."

"Danvers, you on comms? Got something that needs your attention," Maggie said.

"I'm here. East side. You?" Alex was busy scanning the area, much like her sister.

"West. All clear. About last night... Uh..."

"This is neither the time nor the place to talk about what I think you wanna talk about." Alex didn't want to discuss it at all, let alone while patrolling at work.

"Do you not wanna marry me?" True to her personality, Maggie was blunt, just getting it all out there.

"Of course, I do. Look, I... I wanna be your wife. I wanna have a dog. I wanna have the house. All of it. I just... I just don't want a big wedding."

"Why? Talk to me, please. You have to tell me what's going on."

"Because my dad won't be there. He can't come. He can't walk me down the aisle." Alex's stare was far away.

"You could've told me that." Maggie was looking in the direction she knew Alex to be.

"I didn't wanna make a big deal out of it. You're already dealing with family issues that I can't imagine. So, I just...I hoped that I would just let it go." 

"Look, I've had more practice at choosing my family because I've had to. And I think, if you take a deep breath, you're gonna find your way out of this..." Maggie paced softly. "There's so many people who love you. Just think about how they're gonna make our day good, and tell me how I can help."

"Okay. I can do that."

"Okay, I love you."

"You too. Forever."

"You too, my favorite couple," Winn broke in, unable to help himself. 

"Winn, shut up," Maggie ordered. 

"Winn, get off the comms," was Alex's reply.

"Favourite? Them? Really?" Kara asked snarkily.

Everyone heard Lena tsk and give a small, throaty laugh.

"You are -so- in for it, Winn," Maggie laughed.

"Keep the line clear," J'onn ordered. 

A moment later, a young girl running crashed into Alex but kept going. "Oh, sorry!" she called behind her.

"Hey! Watch out there," Alex replied, holding out her arm.

"Ruby!" Sam called as she jogged after her. "Rubes, come here, baby. Come here."

Ruby came back, standing next to her mother.

"I don't think that was an apology," Sam told her.

"I'm very sorry for bumping into you," Ruby said to Alex, genuinely.

"Totally okay," Alex replied. "Thank you for apologizing."

"Can I go now, Mom? I want to get up close," Ruby pled.

"Just don't get so far ahead I can't see you, okay?" The words had barely left Sam's mouth before Ruby was darting through the crowd to get to the front.

"She's fun," Alex remarked mildly. 

"Thanks. Just trying to enjoy the microsecond I have left before she's a teenager," Sam replied, rolling her eyes.

"Bye," she said a moment later, giving the strange woman a smile before turning back towards the front and picking her way politely through the crowd. 

"Bye," Alex replied calmly.

"Ladies and gentlemen of National City," the announcer spoke cheerfully, "please welcome the chairwoman and CEO of L Corp, Lena Luthor."

With that, Lena plastered a smile on her face and stepped out. She was doing this for Kara, and that thought alone buoyed her. "Now, I know you all didn't come here to see me. So, I'll start with the good stuff, and then I'll say just a few very brief words. My fellow citizens of National City, the Girl of Steel!"

The giant curtain fell away slowly, showing off the huge, shiny metal statue of Kara in mid-flight.

"There you are," J'onn said, nodding at the statue.

Kara gave him a small smile back. She liked it, honestly, but a giant sculpture of herself was the last thing she was worried about.

Lena looked behind her and smiled at the huge rendition of her girlfriend before turning back. "I am so honored to be able to present this statue of our hometown hero. Some of you must be thinking, I know. It's a cold day in hell, a Luthor praising a Kryptonian. But ever since I came here, she has been an inspiration to me. She's been a mentor, and most importantly, she's been a friend."

The crowd cheered again.

"Now would be a good time for you to get down there and join the crowd," J'onn told Kara.

She nodded, and made to take off, but then--

The land was suddenly rocked by what seemed to be an earthquake.

Lena automatically crouched next to the podium. -Another day, another attack.-

That was the last thought she held in her head, because a moment later a blue and red blur had picked her up and practically tossed her into the cozy apartment she'd basically moved into over the last six months.

But the movement had been fast, far too fast, and right after Kara had set her down and flown away, Lena tottered to the bathroom as fast as she could before throwing up into the toilet. She almost didn't make it, but sheer Luthor stubbornness saved her from barfing on Kara's floor.

Back at the waterfront, Sam realized she could no longer see her daughter in the melee of people fleeing. "Ruby?" she called, worried.

"Schott, did you see where that missile came from?" J'onn demanded as Kara joined him again, having safely dropped off her precious cargo.

"We have no heat signature, okay, there's no atmospheric disruption, there's no electromagnetic trail," Winn babbled. "Alex, have you seen anything?"

"Negative visual contact. It came out of nowhere," Alex said into her comms before turning her attention to the civilians freaking out in front of her. "Let's go, keep moving!"

"Okay, you know what? We're pulling up every security feed within a two-mile radius. There's got to be an origin point for whatever just hit the waterfront," Winn said, directing the techs around him.

"J'onn, can you locate DuBois telepathically?" Kara asked. 

"I'll try," J'onn said, trying as hard as he could to tune out the panicked screaming below. "I can't sense DuBois' mind."

"I don't get it. The cloaking device should not be able to cloak a missile," Winn frowned, standing hunched over his terminal.

"Then what just hit us and where did it come from?" J'onn demanded.

And just like that, scanning over the water, Kara -got- it. "The pressure regulator wasn't meant for high altitude, it was meant for low altitude. They're underwater." 

In the submarine, Bloodsport walked calmly down the aisle into the main room, then leaned on the chairs of his mission specialists.

At his nod, one of the men fired the next missile. It shot through the water easily, hitting the rock underneath the waterfront and causing new seismic cracks to open up beneath the panicked crowd.

Kara was flying around now, trying to figure out the issue from her unique vantage point.

"I cannot track that explosion to the source, you guys. The radar's not picking up any underwater signals," Winn continued.

"I'll clear that building," J'onn ordered. "Danvers, Sawyer, stay on the waterfront. Supergirl, find that submarine. Luthor, have you been evacuated?"

"Yes," Lena managed to say between dry heaves. "I'm safe." -If not entirely sound,- she thought ruefully as she retched into the toilet again. Her brain needed to catch up with her body, but she knew her history of recent concussions was working against her in that respect.

Kara stopped in the air next to the waterfront, closed her eyes, and listened. Not for the crowd, not for the city, but out into the water, a heartbeat she'd heard before in the background. She concentrated carefully, her supersenses reaching--and then there he was, under the water. Bloodsport.

As Kara sped away and dived into the ocean, Maggie and Alex ran to the edge of the waterfront, holding onto the safety rails. "She can't breathe underwater," Alex explained to Maggie, who frowned with concern.

Kara swam and swam, hearing that heartbeat grow ever closer. And then, suddenly, she swam right into iron, jostling the sub and giving its occupants a nasty surprise. Thankfully, she'd collided with it in the exact spot to render the cloaking device useless.

"She's found us," Bloodsport growled. 

"The cloaking device is down," replied the tech nervously. 

"Fire!" Bloodsport yelled.

"We're not locked on," the tech tried to protest.

"Fire now!" Bloodsport screamed, angry.

The tech obeyed.

Kara saw the missile launch, and swam after it.

Sam had completely lost track of her daughter in the mess. "Ruby?! Ruby!"

"Mom?" Ruby called, crying. Somehow they'd gotten separated, and she was panicking.

"Detonate it!" Bloodsport ordered the tech.

Kara, fortunately, had not been able to catch up to the missile in time, but unfortunately, she was was near enough to it to take as much of the impact as the waterfront did.

The seismic activity caused Sam to fall down completely, barely managing to cradle her head with her arm. As the dust cleared , Sam saw something no mother ever wants to see. Her baby was trapped by a cell phone tower that had fallen down at the same time she had. "Ruby! Ruby," she cried desperately as she scrambled to her feet and ran over.

"Oh, baby," she choked out as she tried to take stock. There was no way she could lift it by herself. "Help! Somebody help me!" she called, to no avail.

Ruby cried, pinned underneath the tower, unable to do anything.

"Supergirl?" Lena quavered over comms when she could catch her breath again. "Supergirl, where are you?"

With a scream powered by the millions of mothers who came before, Sam somehow managed to lift the tower just enough to toss it aside, off Ruby. The metal buckled under her grip, and Ruby saw the whole thing as her mother pulled her upright enough to wrap her in a safe, relieved hug.

As they both cried, Sam spotted the mangled metal where her hands had been, staring at her own fingers in wonder before wrapping that arm tightly around her child.

"Oh, no," Alex said, realizing that Kara wasn't answering. "Supergirl? Supergirl?"

Kara was floating in a realm unknown to any of them. It felt like Rao's light, it truly did. No sound, no feeling, no--breath? She was unaware that she was sinking, sinking into the depths.

"Finish them off," Bloodsport ordered when he realized that he'd somehow neutralized Supergirl.

"Kara, answer me!" Alex demanded, her eyes closed, frowning.

"Kara?" Winn cried. 

Kara couldn't hear anyone.

"Kara!" Lena managed to yell.

"Answer us, come on," Alex begged.

"Kara, wake up!" Lena rasped from the bathroom floor, as loud as she could.

Kara's eyes flew open. She needed oxygen. She needed to get the sub out of the water. She promised to always come home.

And with that, she took the missile and stuffed it back into the sub before swimming underneath it and pushing it upwards into the light, into the air.

She looked around, dazed. -Where do I put this?- she asked herself.

\--

Lena had managed to get her head out of the toilet, have a shower and brush her teeth, and throw her hair up in a bun by the time Kara burst in and snatched her up, warm tears running down her collar as Kara sobbed.

"Easy, my love," Lena soothed after a few moments spent suspended in midair, trying to stroke Kara's hair as best she could. "We're okay. We're both okay."

Kara choked on her own breath and laid Lena carefully down on the couch. "We almost weren't. I almost didn't come home."

"But you did," Lena reminded her, curling up against her wrecked girlfriend. "You came home to me."

"I heard you call," Kara hiccuped. "You told me to wake up, and I did, I -did-!"

"I'm so glad you heard me," Lena whispered, reaching up to smooth strands of hair out of Kara's face. "We were all so worried."

Kara sighed, trying to stem her tears. "I just heard you call me and I thought of breaking my promise, and I had to do what I had to do."

"I love you," Lena replied softly. "I love you -so- much."

"I love -you- so much," Kara whimpered.

Lena kissed her gently. "Darling?"

"Yeah?"

"Go take a shower. You smell like the waterfront."

Kara couldn't help it, she laughed. "Your wish is my command."

"I'll order potstickers from that one place you love," Lena replied, smiling.

"Can you stay tonight?" Kara asked, pouting just a little.

Lena shook her head, smiling. "Important conference call at a late hour, darling. Just came up. Is it okay?"

"Your business has to come first." Kara kissed Lena's nose. "But let the record show I objected."

"The record stands," Lena replied as Kara sauntered off to go shower and she looked down at the restaurant delivery app. -I know you don't like the fact of the meeting, my love, but you'll be happy for the results...-

\--

"Come in," Lena called at the knock on her office door the next afternoon. She smiled as she saw Kara. "Hey, I was just about to call you. I spoke to Edge."

"Please tell me you convinced him not to buy CatCo," Kara replied, walking right up to the desk without bothering to shut the door behind her. 

"Well, you can't convince a bully like that of anything," Lena sighed. 

"So what, CatCo's gone?" Kara couldn't think. There was no way. There had to be something else.

"No," Lena replied, suddenly shy. "I...I bought it."

Kara stared at her girlfriend as the words sank in. "You're kidding...Are you kidding?"

Lena chuckled as she came around the desk to lean back against it and be next to Kara. "Pretty badass right? I'm just trying in my own small way to be more like Supergirl."

"Oh, Lena," Kara breathed, overcome. The next moment, she wanted to jump her lover's bones in thanks, but no, they were at Lena's place of work.

"And I was hoping maybe you could break the story?" Lena offered, still shy.

"Oh, uh...I actually quit," Kara stammered. 

Lena blinked. "Well, then un-quit. I can't do this without you. I literally know nothing about running a media empire," she continued, taking Kara's hands in hers.

"Neither do I!" Kara protested.

"You know more than I do. You've studied under Cat and...I mean, I trust you. How often do you get to work with your..." Lena bit her lip hard before she finished that statement in a very incriminating way. "...best friend?"

A moment later Edge stormed into Lena's office, tiny Dayara literally hanging off his arm and trying to bear down, her flats sliding easily across the floor. "You're more of a lunatic than your brother is!" he snarled at Lena.

"Excuse me?" she replied icily, dropping Kara's hands to fold her arms defensively.

"I could ruin you," Edge accused.

"Can I shoot him, Miss Luthor?" Dayara asked angrily, having let him go. "He just brushed by me as if he was entitled to you! I did not get to hit the silent alarm."

"You are dangerously close to being thrown out by security," Lena said to Edge. "Or I could let my assistant shoot you."

"You know what? I'm gonna go and let you handle this," Kara said, brushing past Edge and taking off her glasses once she knew he couldn't see her.

All three women knew what she was going to do, of course, but the clueless man would remain so.

"You are gonna regret, so regret, the day you screwed me," Edge replied menacingly, advancing on Lena. "I sure hope you enjoyed yourself. Because now you have -all- of my attention."

"Oh, Edge, like every woman who's ever had all of your attention, I couldn't care less," Lena replied nonchalantly, with a signature smirk.

A moment later, Supergirl landed on the balcony and let herself in. "Miss Luthor, you finished with him?"

Lena's smile was devious and predatory. "He's all yours."

"What do you think you're gonna do?" Edge demanded, right before being swept up by one very annoyed Girl of Steel.

He was dropped onto the hot aluminum of a shipping container shortly thereafter.

"The attack on the waterfront? I know it was you," Supergirl said as Edge scrambled to his feet. "To clear the way for your development. You're the only person who had anything to gain from it."

"Yeah, well... You can't prove anything," Edge sneered.

"Not yet. But I see you, Edge. National City is my town. And now you've got -all- my attention."

As she flew off, Edge yelled as loud as he could. "Hey! You can't just leave me here!"

But leave him on a cargo ship destined for international waters, she did. At least, for two hours, before taking pity on him and flying him back to National City without a word.

\--

Alex walked up to the glassed-in conference room where J'onn was, steeling herself. She'd spoken with Maggie about it during their wait to debrief, and so the only thing left to do was ask the man himself. "Hey," she called softly, leaning against the doorjamb.

"Hey, Alex," J'onn replied, looking up at her and smiling. "You know what? I think we both deserve a drink. Come on, I'm buying the first round."

"Since we know Winn won't," Alex replied, chuckling nervously as J'onn stood up. "Hey, can I talk to you about something?" She stepped into the room.

"Yeah, sure, go ahead." J'onn kept preparing to leave.

"So, uh... Maggie and I figured it out. We're going to have a really big wedding. The biggest, gayest wedding that National City has ever seen, actually. And I'm gonna need everybody that I love to be there."

"Sure, Alex. You know I wouldn't miss it for the world, right?"

"I know. But I'm gonna need something from you. Something more than just being there."

He stood up, turning to her, slightly confused.

"You've always been like a father to me. And, J'onn, I choose you to be my family," Alex said as he closed the distance between them.."And I want...if you will...to have you walk me down the aisle." She wasn't at all proud of how the last few words came out soaked in unshed tears, but she couldn't take it back.

They regarded each other for a long moment before J'onn couldn't help it. There was one of his Earth children, the daughter he was closest to, asking him to perform one of the most sacred yet secular duties a father could have in this society. He choked up, his hand flying to his face to hide it.

"Stop, don't cry," Alex pled hurriedly. "If you cry, I'm gonna cry, and then everybody here is gonna know that we actually -can- cry, so..."

J'onn coughed and cleared his throat, squishing the tears back down. He could cry after leaving the office. He could. He took his hand away from his face and looked into his daughter's eyes.

"Alex, it would...it would be my honor." 

Alex nodded solemnly, and he couldn't help but give a watery laugh and hug her.

"Come on, let me help you celebrate," he continued as they slung their arms around each other's shoulders and began to walk out. "Do I have to wear a tux?"

"I'm wearing Kevlar and boots, so..."

\--

That evening, the Superfriends celebrated together. They had multiple reasons to do so. Not only had Supergirl saved the day again, but Alex and Maggie's wedding was back on and Catco was safe.

The soon-to-be newlyweds were laughing and cuddling, J'onn was in extra high spirits, and James was buying the table round after round. Winn was telling awful jokes, mostly to Dayara who he'd definitely taken a shine to, but everyone was laughing just the same. Kara kept her arm curled around Lena's waist and refused to move it. Lena just smiled and giggled as the celebrations went on.

"So glad you could join us," Winn told Lena, slurring his words. "You don't come out with the friends enough!"

"Luthors don't have friends, Winn, we have minions," Lena joked, feeling Kara's tiny gasp against her side and her arm tighten. "It's new for me, you know?"

"We're your friends," Winn stressed. "Even if Dayara technically fits the 'minion' profile."

"Suit yourself, Mr, Schott," Dayara scoffed in response. "At least I am a highly-paid minion."

"Friend," Lena replied, turning to her. "Always and forever a friend."

Dayara blushed and looked down in response.

"I'm going to get all the friends another round," James said, laughing.

"Will you not let me put this one on -my- card, Mr. Olsen?" Lena demanded.

"Nope!" James was in good spirits. Kara had tendered her un-resignation and his magazine had the exclusive with Supergirl following the attack on the waterfront that it needed. Catco was safe from the grasping proto-evil that was Morgan Edge, and James couldn't remember feeling any better than this in a long time. 

Kara hadn't apologized, though. She'd given James the letter and said tersely that the new owner of the company asked for her return to the payroll. James had acquiesced. He knew they needed to talk, that he -wanted- to talk, but Kara probably needed to find her footing again at Catco before they could do that.

-I just need to know why you think I'm jealous of Lena,- James thought as he broke away to go buy the next set of drinks. -Maybe it was just something, anything to justify what you did?-

But he let it go for the evening, since everyone was happy and having fun.

\--

See you tomorrow, boss.  
❤️

Kara smiled as she laid her phone down. Lena hadn't been able to stay over, but those were the breaks when you were dating the city's most powerful woman. -At least I'll see her at Catco now, too,- she thought happily. A life with Lena woven into it as often as possible was a happy one, she'd decided months ago, and this was yet another way. And she -liked- being happy for a change.

\--

Sam almost believed her nightmare was indicative of something bigger. Almost. But then, she reasoned to herself, the woman in the blue dress with the screaming, evil face must have been some form of fear over almost losing Ruby earlier that day. It couldn't mean anything at all, she told herself. Nothing at all.  
The glowing spacecraft hidden underneath the rock of National City's waterfront, however, would soon prove otherwise.


	17. triggers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The elevator doesn't get destroyed at this time."
> 
> "What?"
> 
> "Kara doesn't kill the elevator. I'm explaining to you because you look nervous."
> 
> "I'm not nervous. Maybe I'm a little bit...concerned, but that's not the same thing."
> 
> "Because we can stop now, if you want."
> 
> "No, you could write a little bit more...if you want."

Good morning, my love. ❤️  
How do you do it? Even I sleep more than you.  
Some days I don't think I "do" it, to be honest with you.  
Can I wake up with you?

Lena sent a video call a moment later.

"Good morning, gorgeous," Lena teased gently.

Kara groaned. She was still in bed.

"You'd better not be late for my first day at Catco," Lena said, smiling.

Kara yawned. "I won't, I won't. I still have half an hour."

"Tsk. Will that be enough?"

"Superspeed." Kara smiled sleepily. "You know, you're really, really pretty with the morning light behind you like that."

Lena laughed softly. " How's that?"

"Your eyes blaze," Kara whispered. "The sun lights them up. And your hair is almost a halo. Oh, Lena, you're -so- beautiful, didn't you know?"

Lena blushed. "Thank you, darling."

"Put your hair up before you come to Catco?" Kara's soft request came out as a whimper.

"Tell me why and I might."

"I like when your hair's just for me," Kara whispered. "When it's down like that. For me. But you're going to be around so many people..."

Lena smiled. "I'll put it up, darling."

Kara cooed happily. "Thank you, babe."

"Go dress and get some food in you, my love. See you soon?"

"See you soon."

Kara might not have been able to wake up with her person like Alex was currently doing, but they made it work regardless.

And she had to -hurry- if she wanted to get doughnuts before work.

\--

"I need to discuss something with you in the highest confidence," Lena told James as they rode up in the executive elevator together. She'd gone vintage with her hair before leaving L Corp, throwing it in a quick pinned style at the nape of her neck.

"Sure. My office is the best place." He began to lead the way as the doors opened, but an even ditzier, bubblier blonde than Kara was right there and began talking.

"Ms. Luthor, it's so nice to see you!" the woman enthused.

Lena frowned, but she knew she'd seen that face before and she could put a name to it. "Eve...Teschmacher, right?"

The blonde honest-to-god -squealed-. "Sorry, I'm a huge admirer of yours."

"Thank you, Eve," Lena replied warmly. 

"Oh, uh, can I get a you a coffee? You take it black, right? I'm not stalking you. I emailed your assistant at L Corp about all your favorite things. I hate salmon, too," Eve rambled. 

Lena blinked. "Well, thank you, yes, a coffee would be lovely."

"Great!" Eve grinned. "And a shot of wheatgrass for Mr. Olsen, right?"

James nodded, smiling, as Eve walked past them and headed to the main elevator bank.

"Eve, why don't you just use this elevator?" Lena called, motioning back to the elevator she and James had just come from. "It'll go straight to the ground floor."

Eve stopped dead, looking back. "Oh, no, only the boss can use it."

"That's just silly," Lena replied, frowning. "Anybody who needs it should be able to use it."

Eve looked like someone had just told her to keep eating the cookies in the forbidden jar. "...All right!" She reversed course and headed for the elevator formerly designated Cat's and Cat's alone.

"You know, I keep -telling- and -telling- them that. Anyone can use that elevator," James said as they walked toward the glass-panelled office. "Maybe if -you're- the one to tell them, it'll stick."

Once they were inside the office and the doors were closed, sealing off any sound, Lena and James stood close together so they could speak softly.

"Catco is the perfect distraction," Lena told him. "I've been spending so much time at the DEO that it was starting to look suspicious at L Corp."

James nodded.

"But if I show up enough around Catco, you and Jess can cover for me," Lena continued. "I'm wherever the people who want me -aren't-."

"Makes sense," James replied.

"I have to be involved just enough so that it's plausible I'm here a lot," Lena said. "And for that, I need your help. I'm not interested in running Catco, I know nothing about that sort of thing. Maybe you could show me just enough that it looks good? But honestly, I'd prefer to leave the whole company in your hands."

James nodded. He'd been afraid of this morning, afraid that Lena would bound in, take over, and mess everything up. But, as usual, she made sense and it was the most strategic thing to do. "What about L Corp?"

"I'm in the final processes of hiring someone to be me," Lena said, chuckling. "That way the board has a way to feel secure while I'm running Catco, I feel secure that -you're- running Catco, and I get to do what I -want- for a change."

She smiled, and James swore he saw the room lighten a few degrees. Love definitely looked good on Lena.

A knock on the door made them both jump, but it was only Kara, holding up something.

James and Lena nodded, and she rushed in.

"Lena, welcome to CatCo!" Kara burbled, handing what she was holding over to Lena. 

Lena looked at it, it was a very nice leather planner that she knew the brand of. It wasn't cheap at all. "You didn't have to do that."

"It's a Danvers family tradition. First day of school you get a planner!" Kara grinned.

"It's lovely," Lena replied warmly. "In the Luthor house on the first day, we would hire a private investigator to make sure our teachers' credentials were up-to-date."

All three of them laughed, James a bit nervously. Given his history with Lena's family and Kal, he still wasn't used to random anecdotes about Luthor family life.

Kara's phone beeped, and she whipped it out to look at it. "Um, crap." She looked back at the door, remembering that she left it open.

"Go chase that source, Kara," James said reassuringly.

"You can use Cat's elevator," Lena added.

"You guys are the best, I'll be back later!" Kara said as she adjusted everything she was holding and booked it.

"Show me around, Mr. Olsen?" Lena asked with a slightly too-big smile after Kara rushed out of the office.

"Love to," James replied, nodding in understanding.

\--

"It is not a personal attack on your taste."

"I wasn't even thinking that until you just suggested it," Maggie replied.

"It's a fact. Okay, Winn, back me up," Alex went on.

"Hm? I don't think that I should get involved," Winn said, trying to hastily distance himself from the explosion he knew was coming.

"Because you're on my side, aren't you?" Maggie asked him slyly.

"Oh, yeah, right," Alex scoffed.

"Well..." Winn wavered.

"What? Wait... I saved your -life-," Alex argued.

"Yeah, but, like, so has everybody else here," Winn replied. 

"Don't try to make him feel bad for siding with me," Maggie put in.

"What, did you pay him to agree with you?" Alex was mad now, mad and she didn't know why and this was dumb but she was -mad-.

"Oh, now you're accusing me of..." Maggie tried to retort.

"Well, if the shoe fits," Alex shot back.

"Hey, hey, hey! Hey. What is all this about?" J'onn finally cut in, walking over.

"We can't agree on one very important wedding detail," Alex told him, trying to contain her anger. "Band or DJ?"

He took a moment to think about it. "The human mind reacts to music very much like other stimuli. Tastes, smells. If the song doesn't sound exactly the way you're used to hearing it, you enjoy it less, and are, therefore, less likely to get jiggy on the dance floor. I say DJ," J'onn finished.

"Oh, yes!" Alex cheered as Supergirl flew in.

"Come on," Maggie grumbled.

"-Jiggy-?" Winn couldn't believe what he'd just heard. 

"Someone rang?" Kara asked. 

"Detective Sawyer brought this in this morning," J'onn said, walking to the briefing table. "Mr. Schott?"

"Yeah, we thought you might be able to see something the cops didn't," Winn said, tapping on his tablet to bring things up on the screens.

"She hit two banks back-to-back," Maggie sighed.

"Where are the guards?" Kara asked.

"Unconscious on the floor," Alex replied as they watched the footage.

"Any leads on how she took 'em out?"

"Well, we thought it might be gas," Winn began.

"But toxicity came back negative," Maggie finished. 

"According to the report, she walked right in the front door. No weapons of any kind. Everyone just cleared out of her way, let her take whatever she wanted," J'onn said.

"Whoa, we got a silent alarm tripped at 25 and Cedar," Winn said, looking down at his tablet. 

"Looks like that's our new friend," Kara said, flying away a second later.

\--

Getting to the bank took a matter of seconds, and it was easy enough to find her way to the vault where the new bank robber was busy. "I got you cornered," Kara asserted, not bothering to put her hands on her hips.

"Do you?" scoffed the blonde in the black catsuit, not even pausing.

"What did you do to them up there?" Kara demanded.

"I only wanted to play. But they didn't want to play with me," the blonde pouted.

"Well, you are not getting away with it," Kara assured her.

"Oh! You think you're the cat and I'm the bird. You got it backwards," she smirked. "You can join me. Goodness gets -old- after awhile, doesn't it? Especially when you're broke. Evil -pays-."

Kara scoffed. "Your priorities are seriously out of whack."

"I know, right?" the blonde giggled. 

"Put the bag down," Kara warned.

The blonde's face straightened out and she began to advance on Kara.

For Kara, the world went dark, and she was dizzy. She couldn't figure out what was happening, and even though she registered the metal of the safe deposit boxes against her back and hands, the cold darkness became encompassing.

"Make sure they are okay," Maggie ordered. "I'm gonna check the vault."

As she trotted down the stairs, she saw a horrible sight. Supergirl was whimpering on the floor, sitting down while grabbing the safe deposit boxes with a thousand yard stare.

"Everyone out of the way!" Maggie yelled. "Get out of here now!" she admonished someone who wasn't moving fast enough.

She knelt next to Kara carefully, putting reassuring hands on her shoulders. "Hey, Kara, Kara, it's okay, it's okay."

\--

"Okay, the scans of your vitals are coming up normal," Lena said, peering at the display of the machine she'd just scanned Kara with.

"See, I told you, I am -fine,-" Kara told Maggie and Alex. "This is totally unnecessary."

"None of the human victims remember what happened in there. Do you?" Maggie asked.

"I don't know. I felt like the walls of the vaults were closing in on me, like I was suffocating," Kara replied, shivering.

Lena wrapped warm arms around her. "Sounds like she made you feel claustrophobic."

"You used to have episodes like that sometimes, when you first came to Earth," Alex said.

"We need to find out who she is and how we track her," Kara insisted.

"Well, at the moment, you're our best clue," J'onn said as he walked in. His eyes began to glow red a second later.

"What are you doing?" Lena asked.

"Hey, I thought you couldn't read Kryptonian minds," Winn said.

"I can't, but I can scan her mind for residual psychic activity."

"Just remind me to get you a 'World's Best Boss' mug," Winn replied. 

J'onn kept scanning. "Well, she's definitely a psychic, but she's not like me. There are traces of a particular type of psionic interference in your mind, the type only used by metahumans." His eyes returned to normal.

"Okay, well, I'll start combing through the metahuman database," Winn said.

"In the meantime, I'll monitor potential targets for unusual activity," J'onn replied.

"If we locate her, I'll take her down," Kara said firmly. 

"It's not safe," Lena argued automatically.

"She caught me off guard last time. It's not gonna happen again," Kara assured her.

\--

"Hey, how you doing?" Kara asked James as they rode up together in the main elevator.

James was agitated, tapping his feet against the floor and trying to jiggle the drink holder in his hands too much. "I'm okay, I'm just running late. This coffee took longer than expected."

"For what?" Kara frowned. 

He looked at her, not understanding. "Uh, Lena called a meeting for the news room."

"She did?"

"Yeah, she didn't tell you?" James frowned as well.

Kara checked her phone. "Oh crap! She did, she texted me, I just didn't see it!"

The two of them made it to the meeting just as the last stragglers were arriving, and with coffee in his hands, Lena couldn't get upset at him. She lifted an eyebrow when Kara looked at her, but the blonde mouthed "sorry" and looked so penitent that Lena couldn't bring herself to say anything.

The meeting went off without a hitch, but Lena only got to say hello to Kara before the blonde got a text, breathing "robber" before bolting.

"She is -not- herself," James remarked.

"Something happened earlier," Lena replied.

"Let's talk in my office." James led the way.

Once the door was closed behind them, Lena sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. She could feel the migraine beginning.

"Tell me what's going on," James asked. "Please?"

"Kara tried to apprehend that serial bank robber," Lena replied softly. "But the robber was some kind of metahuman, psychic interference. She had what we think was an extended, acute panic attack."

James's expression grew even more troubled. "Is she okay?"

Lena gave a sort of exasperated flick of the wrist to the general direction of the elevator. "What do -you- think?" Her tone was desperate, out of control, unshed tears soaking it, much to her embarrassment.

"Hey, hey, wait a minute, no," James soothed, pulling Lena into his arms. "Kara's tough. You know? She'll be fine."

"This isn't something a nap in a sunbed can fix," Lena snapped.

James ignored the tone and ignored how ramrod stiff Lena had become in his embrace. He tightened his hold just a little. "I know. It's scaring me too, and you're so close to her that it must be awful for you."

Lena sighed. "It is. Also, stop cuddling the boss when the office walls are windows."

James dropped his arms, since that sounded like the snarky, in-control Lena he was used to. "Yes ma'am, CEO ma'am."

Lena huffed. "Get back to work, yeah? I'm going to keep introducing myself to everyone, hear their stories."

James nodded. "Sounds like a good idea."

\--

The blonde bank robber was calmly headed toward her vehicle inside the parking garage when Kara finally caught up with her, using heat vision to ricochet off the pole next to her.

"Trying to sneak up on a psychic?" the robber taunted.

"Almost worked," Kara replied flippantly. 

But then, the blonde took a few steps towards Kara and shot some kind of psychic energy at her, causing her to stagger.

Winn's tablet lit up. "Lena's doohickey is working," he crowed. "I'm getting data!"

"Supergirl, are you all right?" Alex demanded. She turned to J'onn. "Tell me there's something you can do."

"I can try and create a psychic shield to protect her mind from the attacks," J'onn replied. 

"It'll work?" Alex asked tersely.

"I don't know," J'onn said, putting two fingers to his temple and projecting as intensely as he could.

"Someone else has come to play," the robber said as she tilted her head and frowned. 

"J'onn," Kara whispered. 

"Your friend should be careful," the blonde replied, a triumphant smirk crossing her face.

As she closed her eyes and projected back, J'onn found his very -being- overwhelmed with fear, and he fell to the rotunda floor, groaning.

"J'onn?" Alex cried, rushing over to him.

"Just you and me now," the robber taunted.

Kara sent an intense shot of freeze breath directly at the criminal, who promptly flew backwards into a car. 

But the blonde took only a second before getting back up and striding towards Kara, sending another mind wave that shattered the rear windshield of the vehicle behind her.

Kara fell to her knees as the dizzy darkness overtook her once again.

"Mind over matter," the robber gloated.

Kara tried to get to her feet. "What are you doing to me?" she cried.

"Fear is a powerful tool," the blonde replied.

Kara's world went dark. She was now in some kind of spaceship, in a hall.

"Kara," said the robber. "Kara."

But Kara only saw her mother, bending down and holding out her hand.

"Kara," Alura said softly. "Kara, I love you."

"Mom," Kara whispered.

"Kara, because of the Earth's yellow sun, you will have great powers on this planet. You will do extraordinary things."

Alura vanished, replaced easily by the tiny confines of the Kryptonian pod Kara had been stuffed in so long ago. And it wasn't adult Kara whose breath came scared and fast, no. It was teen Kara, her voice much higher and her resolve much lower. No matter where she looked, she only saw the pod. And then, the pod launched.

Kara saw her burning, dying planet as she cried. The quiet moment in the atmosphere as she saw Kal's pod taking off. And then the horrible feeling of the first bump as the piece of Krypton knocked her pod off-course.

"Supergirl," Alex called. "Supergirl!"

Lena skidded her car to a stop, threw it in park, and ran to Kara, who was lying gasping on the ground. "I'm here," she soothed desperately, rolling Kara onto her back and locking eyes with her. "I'm here."

"Lena?" Kara rasped, tears in her eyes.

"I'm here, darling," Lena replied, pulling Kara up a little further to hug her close.

\--

"I'm sorry I couldn't hold her off," J'onn apologized as Kara and Lena walked in. "She's more powerful than any psychic I have ever encountered."

"What happened this time?" Alex asked.

"It was the same as before," Kara replied.

Lena shot her a look. -Liar.-

"I got our girl," Winn announced. "Gayle Marsh, law-abiding citizen of Skokie, Illinois, until one day she snapped and went on a bank-robbing spree. Uh, let's see, authorities nicknamed her "Psi" after a string of -psy-chologically-enhanced robberies, which ravaged a series of small town banks throughout the Midwest a couple of months ago."

"Where do we go from here?" Kara asked. 

"Well, now that we know a little bit more, I thought I might start trying to adapt our psychic dampening technology to stop her," Winn said. "Since you hung on to Lena's psychic scanner, I think I've got a pretty good idea on how to start."

"Good work, Agent Schott," J'onn said. "You too, Miss Luthor."

"I still love it when he calls me that," Winn grinned. 

"But we still need to know how she's infiltrating people's minds, so get started," J'onn said firmly. 

"I'll head to the precinct and see if there's an update on any witness reports that might help," Alex said. 

"I need to talk to you," Kara told Winn as he was heading out of the room. "Both of you," she said, looking over at Lena.

"Ooh, this is very covert ops," Winn smiled as he led them into one of the training rooms. "What's up?"

"I know how she's doing it," Kara said once she and Lena were sitting on a bench together. "I felt her this time. She's targeting people's fear."

Lena frowned. "How do you know that?"

"I saw my mother," Kara said bluntly. "I saw Krypton...explode. I re-lived my last moments there. And then being stuck, floating through space for so long, knowing I could never have my life back."

Lena wrapped her arms around Kara comfortingly.

"Psi put me back in that pod. Completely trapped and alone," Kara continued, shivering. Her hands darted up to grip Lena's arm. "It was...it was so quiet. Silence was the worst part. I felt completely cut off from everything and everyone I have ever known."

Lena rested her chin on Kara's shoulder. She could feel the fear and anger and hurt vibrating through her girlfriend's body, and she just wanted it to -stop-.

"We have to stop her, Winn," Kara managed to finish.

"You should tell J'onn, Alex," Winn replied after a moment. 

"No," Kara replied flatly. "They can't know. They'll just worry. You have to be the one to solve this, that's why I'm telling you. You're already altering the psychic dampeners, right? This will help?"

Lena nodded against Kara's shoulder.

"Yeah, I mean, knowing that it targets fear centers, sure," Winn replied. 

"Good," Kara replied tersely.

Both Lena's and Kara's phones chirped a second later.

Kara picked hers up first. "It's James."

Lena sighed as she looked at her screen. "We've got to go."

As they stood up, Winn put his hand on Kara's arm. "Hey, hey. I'm...I'm sorry that this is happening."

"I'll be fine," Kara replied. "My team has my back."

"We do," Winn replied. "We definitely do."

\--

"Can we talk?" James asked as Kara and Lena stepped off the elevator. "All three of us."

"Of course," Lena replied.

"Sure," Kara agreed.

Once safely shut into the glass-walled office and sat down on the couches (Lena maintaining a polite distance from Kara), James sighed.

"What's wrong, James?" Kara asked. She still felt awful, but her job was her job.

"Kara. People are -really- beginning to notice."

"Notice what?" Lena asked.

"That you're running off and doing things but not producing any work," James said. "The talk hasn't turned to favouritism but they're only a step or two away from it. And with the change in power so new and everything..."

"I'm -catching- a -criminal-," Kara snapped. "The article comes later! You know that. They -all- know that."

"Kara," James pressed. "Right now, it's too much. I need you here, here in the office. The questions will become damaging soon enough. And not just for you. For Lena, because everyone knows you're best friends."

Kara growled. "Then I quit. Again!"

"I don't accept your resignation," Lena cut in smoothly.

"Lena!" Kara turned to her, and she could see the tears in those hauntingly blue eyes.

"Kara, listen. Just listen. James has a point. I can be absent, but you can't be." She turned to James. "Is there some story or beat you can invent to put Kara on until we've caught the metahuman?"

"I can say you're following the string of robberies," James told Kara, "but you -have- to have something for me every time you disappear. I don't care what it is, but it just has to relate to that. So I can prove to the other departments that you're working."

Kara sighed. "Fine...fine. I'll write something shortly."

Then her phone chirped. "It's Alex."

"Kara, she hit another bank," Alex said.

"I'm on my way," Kara replied.

"Going with you," Lena said. "I'll leave first."

As Lena left, both James and Kara watched her go.

"Stop staring at my girlfriend's ass," Kara snapped after a moment.

James frowned. "This again?"

"I told you to do something, Olsen," Kara growled. "Kindly do as I say."

She jumped up and ran out, leaving a baffled James in her wake.

"Miss Luthor, hold the elevator," Kara called as she ran over.

Lena shrugged and hit the door open button.

As the elevator doors closed, Kara pulled her shirt open to reveal the crest.

"That's never going to get old," Lena chuckled.

As the elevator began to move, Kara was hit with the dizzying darkness, and she fell over.

"Kara!" Lena cried in surprise, sinking to her knees to pull the blonde close. "Oh no. Baby, stay with me. Stay with me."

"I can't breathe," Kara choked. "I can't breathe..."

"Stay with me," Lena demanded. "Breathe with me. In, one, two, three, four. Out, one, two, three, four..."

Kara sobbed, clinging to Lena as best she could. "I can't, I can't breathe, Lena..."

"Stay with me, my darling," Lena soothed. "I'm going to button your shirt back so no one sees."

"I can't! Lena..." The darkness was ready to swallow Kara whole. She could feel Lena under her fingertips, sure, but the cold darkness was pulling her away.

"Breathe," Lena said firmly. "Breathe with -me-."

By the time the elevator stopped on the ground floor, Kara was standing on her own, if a bit wobbly.

Lena hustled her into the nearest restroom and locked the door after making sure they were alone.

"Alex," Kara protested weakly as her phone rang.

Lena grabbed it. "Alex, hey. She had another panic attack. Can we get another minute?" She wound her free arm tightly around Kara's waist. "Just another minute."

Kara sobbed into Lena's shoulder as she hung up the phone. "I'm so weak," she cried. "I'm not strong enough for this."

"Yes, you -are-," Lena cooed lovingly, knowing that sweet words were what Kara needed. "You're my superhero, darling, and you're going to kick her ass."

Kara's phone rang again.

"Yes?" Lena asked brusquely. "...Oh. I see. Okay."

"What happened?" Kara sniffled.

"She got away," Lena sighed. "This time."

Kara let her head drop and, this time, Lena let her cry herself out.

\--

"She must be getting stronger," Kara grumbled as she sat on the side of the sunbed. "I felt her in that elevator with me. She was in my head again."

"Well, there is no sign of any psychic intrusion," Winn replied, finishing the scan.

"What?" Kara couldn't fathom it. 

"I think that you just had a good old, human panic attack," Winn said, reassuringly.

"That's not possible," Kara insisted. "No, I'm...I'm stronger than that."

"Look, she got in your head, okay? And now she's forcing you to look through some serious trauma," Winn replied. "That is gonna take a toll on anyone. I don't care if you're the strongest person in the world, which..."

Kara just looked at him.

"Look, it's nothing to be ashamed of," Winn said.

"I never said I was ashamed," Kara protested.

Alex walked in. "Winn, J'onn's looking for you." She spotted Kara. "Hey, what are you guys doing up here?"

"Just talking. We're hanging out, just being friends," Winn began to ramble.

"Alex, I have to go, sorry," Kara said quietly, slipping out. She had a deadline to meet now. 

"Yeah. Mmm-hmm. How's it going? I'm good. Thanks for asking," Winn went on. "Just a normal day in the DEO, man. Nothing abnormal happening here. Nothing going on. I mean..."

Fixed with Alex's most serious stare, he kept rambling nervously. "And Kara, Kara is... She's fine, right? I mean, she's not totally, completely fine in, like, the normal sense of the word. If you know what I'm saying. You said J'onn was looking for me? I'm just gonna go ahead and tell you everything, yeah."

Alex rewarded him with a very small smile.

\--

Kara knelt on her living room floor, chanting the ancient verses for peace and serenity. She was alone, which wasn't her preferred way of being presently, but nothing could be done for that.

Lena's new hire at Catco had had some form of family emergency, meaning Lena had to go in and smooth things over at the office. Kara didn't like being apart from her rock, her stability, but she didn't have a choice.

Alex opened her front door a moment later, taking in the scene. "What are you doing?" she asked quietly, going to sit next to Kara. 

"It's Kryptonian meditation," Kara replied. "We say an ancient mantra to strengthen the mind."

"Hm. Never seen you do that before."

"I've never felt like I needed it," Kara sighed. 

"Where's Lena?" Alex asked, gently.

"Running her company." Kara tried to keep her tone as flat and unemotional as possible.

"Winn's still working on the psychic dampening technology," Alex said.

"That's good."

"We had a nice chat."

"Did you?" Kara scoffed. "He told you, didn't he?"

"Well, he's not very good at keeping secrets."

"You shouldn't have done that." Kara sighed, resigned.

"Well, we used to talk to each other about this kind of stuff," Alex said gently. "Why didn't you tell me you saw Krypton, that you were having panic attacks?"

"I didn't want you to worry."

"You fight the most dangerous and evil people on the planet, so I'm kind of always gonna worry." 

"I don't know how to fight this one. And I should be able to stop her, but...but then she makes her way into my mind and...and forces me to re-live the scariest moment of my life. It's...it's torture. How am I supposed to deal with that?" Kara's question was genuine, she honestly had no idea how to fight the psychic attacks.

"Well, by remembering that your fears don't define you. You are who you are as Supergirl. Who you are as Kara. That's what defines you, and she's got nothing on that."

Kara sighed heavily. "My life as Supergirl is the one thing I can count on. I can go out there and help people. I can make a difference in the world. I can... I feel strong, even though a huge part of me feels so weak, and she's taking that away from me. And if I don't have Supergirl, what do I have?"

"You got me," Alex reminded her.

"I know that, silly." Kara's voice was uneven.

"And you've got Lena now. And all of us are behind you, you know that, right?"

Kara nodded, tears pricking behind her eyes. "I do."

Alex scooched forward and pulled her into a hug a moment later.

Lena's hugs were amazing, but Alex's hugs were the all-time -best-.

\--

Meanwhile, downtown, Psi decided to attack the drivers of a nearby armoured truck, sending them to the ground convinced that bees were attacking them. The police came quickly, but it was so easy to neutralize them as well. First, she caused the driver of a nearby crane to panic, sending his wrecking ball into a patrol car.

Watching from the nearby pizza place, Ruby got an idea. A great idea, that would prove to everyone that her mother -did- have superpowers.

She sent a text containing her location to Sam before walking calmly and easily into the fray.

\--

"That thing could take out an entire block," Alex said as she and Kara headed for the briefing table while looking at the news footage. 

"I have to get down there, now," Kara insisted. 

"Hold on," J'onn ordered, Winn trotting alongside him. "Not without this, you're not."

"What is it?" Kara asked as Winn handed it to her.

"Psionic inhibitor ray," he replied.

"It -should- protect you from her powers," J'onn added.

"We'll set a perimeter to secure the area," Alex said. 

"Just have to keep her out of my head long enough to get a good shot off," Kara said, reassuring herself more than anyone else.

"You can do it," Alex replied, watching her go.

\--

The wrecking ball was taking out another patrol car, sending it flying, flashing lights and all.

"Freeze!" ordered a young cop with his gun out.

Psi merely turned her head slightly and sent a light psychic blast.

The cop sank to his knees, choking back tears, as Psi advanced on him and lightly touched her first two fingers to his temple.

"Is it awful?" she asked coldly.

Sam drove as close as she could to the carnage, looking desperately for her daughter.

Ruby saw her first, and the two locked eyes before Ruby headed off toward the chaos instead of to her mother.

"Rube!!" Sam screamed.

But nothing stopped Ruby, until the wrecking ball slammed into a building, the flying chunks of concrete landing next to her and knocking her off her feet. Now it wasn't a game anymore. "Mom!" she cried fearfully.

"Baby!!" Sam wailed, running to her and catching her up in a tight hug.

The wrecking ball's chain had reached the end of the stress it could take as it came away from the building. It snapped.

Sam and Ruby saw it, and Sam held up her arm in what she knew would be a futile effort to break the ball's fall with her forearm. They were going to die, and all of Sam's dreams for the future, the life she was going to build with her daughter, were about to end.

But then Supergirl caught the wrecking ball, flying it up before safely setting it down nearby.

Kara walked confidently behind Psi, watching her carry the money bags easily. -Was two bags of cash worth all this destruction, Gayle? Really?-

She held the ray, which reminded her of nothing so much as an old phone receiver, up before speaking. "Psi!"

She turned it on as Psi turned around, slowly.

The psychic blast that the blonde sent her not only overwhelmed the ray, but forced her to her knees with its power. The ray tried to recover, but she could feel it faltering.

"Ladybird, ladybird, fly away home. Your house is on fire, and your children? They will -burn,-" Psi chanted, slowly, as she advanced on Kara.

Kara figured she'd be sent back to the pod. To Krypton burning. And she was ready for that.

But Psi sent her elsewhere, the blast knocking her back mentally as well as physically. Not to past fact, but to present fiction. And as Kara hit the side of a building and toppled into an outdoor stairwell, she -broke-.

"Supergirl!" Lena begged, caught in a headlock by her brother Lex. "Leave me! Go on!"

"Never," Kara snarled. "Let her go, Lex. It's over."

Lex let out a laugh both menacing and psychotic. "You haven't seen the best I have to offer yet, Supergirl. Or should I say, -Kara-? My lovely little baby sister's girlfriend?"

Behind Lex and off to the side, a door opened, and a nasty-looking robot came through the door.

"Kill the Kryptonian," Lex ordered the robot. "Where her -lover- can see."

Lena cried as she writhed and struggled, trying to get free of the painful headlock.

"It's okay, Lena," Kara called. "I'll just take care of this."

"Let me go," Lena sobbed. "Just let me go, Kara!"

"Never," Kara replied. "You're my everything, Lena!"

Lex laughed again. "Enjoy oblivion, -Supergirl-."

The robot began to attack, and Kara focused on it with her heat vision.

The last thing she expected, however, was that Lex would exert all his energy throwing Lena at the robot and into Kara's way.

Lena let out a scream as the heat vision touched her, the twin beams slicing straight through her abdomen before falling to the floor, silent and stone cold dead.

The robot powered down, and Lex's evil laughter filled her head.

"She's dead," Kara began to cry. 

"Kara, hey, it's me," Lena came in over the comms. "Who's dead?"

"You are," Kara wailed.

"It's okay, you're okay, I'm here," Lena replied, her tone almost frantic. She'd never heard Kara talk like this before.

"I killed you," Kara sobbed. "I broke my promise to always come home because you're not home to come to."

"No," Lena replied swiftly. "I'm alive. I'm right here."

"I was fighting Lex and he was using you to get to me and I killed you!"

"You didn't kill me," Lena soothed. She was rapid-fire texting J'onn.

Do you hear this?  
Yes  
Get me there  
I can't  
You can fly  
GET ME TO HER

"I killed you, it was me. You're dead. Lena's dead."

"I'm talking to you, my love," Lena tried to keep the desperation out of her voice. "How can I be dead?" She didn't care who heard her call Supergirl her love. Not now.

"I know you're dead, I know it! Lex made me kill you!"

J'onn flew onto Lena's balcony, and she slipped her phone into her pocket and let him pick her up bridal-style. 

"Kara, she's not dead," Alex picked up the narrative as J'onn took to the skies.

"She died, I killed her. I killed her! I killed her!" Kara was hysterical now, not caring who heard or saw. The love of her life had just died in front of her.

"She is -not- dead!" Alex roared.

"I killed her," Kara sobbed.

"Lena is -alive-, Kara. She's on her way to you now."

J'onn and Lena landed a second later, and Lena fell to her knees next to Kara, slipping her arms around the strong shoulders she loved. She didn't have time to feel her usual fear of flight. Not now. She could let her knees turn to jelly later.

"I'm here, my love," Lena whispered, planting soft kisses on Kara's cheek. "I'm right here. Can you feel me, darling?"

Kara's eyes suddenly focused, being pulled out of the vision. "Le..Lena?"

"Hi, darling," Lena whispered, tears in her eyes.

"You're not dead," Kara exhaled.

"No. We're going home together, my love, as soon as you finish this horrible Psi woman off." Lena cradled Kara's jaw in her hand and kissed her lips. "I'm right here."

"Lena," Kara sighed, trying to fortify herself again. She clasped her hand over Lena's wrist, kissing the fingers that were caressing her cheek. "Lena..."

"Khap zhao rrip, Kara. I'm here. I'm always gonna be by your side. I promised you," Lena whispered.

Kara nodded, gulping air to steady herself. "I love you, Lena."

They sat there, breathing deeply together, for a few more moments.

Then Lena kissed her again softly, and slipped the psychic meter into Kara's hand. It wasn't a weapon or a shield, but it could at least gather more data. "Go get her, Supergirl."

Kara swallowed hard, nodded, and stood up, flying back out to face the metahuman who just tried to destroy her.

"You're not going anywhere," she told the smirking blonde. 

"Hm, what did you see, I wonder? What brought the Girl of Steel to her knees?" Psi taunted, sending a psychic blast.

"A lie," Kara answered calmly, rubbing the little meter with her thumb. -I love you, Lena.-

"Fear is not a lie." Psi tried to blast Kara with the psychic energy again, but she only wobbled slightly. 

"Fear cripples. Annihilates spirits. It is the only weapon that matters." Psi sent another blast as she walked forward, but Kara wasn't moving.

"Fear made me stronger than you!" Psi challenged, inches from Kara as she sent her strongest blast yet. "No one is safe from it!"

Finally, she faltered. Why wasn't the stupid superhero going down? "Why aren't you scared anymore?"

"Mind over matter," Kara gloated before headbutting the annoying blonde, knocking her out.

As Psi was led off, inhibitors and all manner of dampeners attached to her, Kara caught a glimpse of Lena, standing among the crowd, smiling proudly at her.

Kara could hear her sister talking to the woman with the danger-prone girl and then her fiancée, with a small exchange that, when Kara revisited it later, would strike fear into her heart for Alex's future happiness. But all she could see or think about in the front of her mind at the moment was the proud brunette behind the hastily-placed barricade.

Meet me at Catco when you're done. ❤️  
Okay boss ❤️❤️

\--

Only a few people were left in the office by the time Kara made it up, and Lena was sitting on Kara's desk, nervously fidgeting with a pen.

"Is everything okay?" Kara asked, worriedly. "I told James I had to finish typing up the report and get Supergirl's statement on the record, I have a few more hours."

Lena sighed. "Nothing to do with that. I just...I feel awful about today. I had to go deal with things and I couldn't help Winn with the psychic ray. Maybe if I had, it would have worked better."

Kara shook her head. "No, Lena, don't blame yourself. You gave me that little gadget, and it helped." She produced the small, silver item.

Lena chuckled sadly as she took it. "It's just a psychic meter. I didn't upgrade it or anything. It didn't help you this time. It was just gathering data."

"It helped," Kara said firmly. "You gave it to me. It -helped.-"

Lena tilted her head, giving a sad smile. "Promise?"

"If you're going to be like -that-, give it back and make yourself another one," Kara teased as she made a show of grabbing for it. "I'll keep it forever and love it and name it George."

Lena smirked, putting it in her bag. "After I get the data off, you can keep it."

The elevator dinged, and Kara kept the straightest face she could as the mother of the disaster-prone daughter walked out.

Lena got up and walked over to meet her. "I'm so glad you could make it." 

"Thank you so much for being so understanding," the woman said as they moved back to where Kara was standing. 

"Oh god, please no, I am no stranger to family drama," Lena answered back easily. "Kara, this is Samantha Arias. She is going to be taking over for me at L Corp. Sam, this is my coworker and best friend, Kara Danvers."

"That's great," Kara exclaimed, shaking the woman's hand. "It's lovely to meet you, Ms. Arias."

"Please, it's just Sam," Sam demurred easily. If this woman had cracked Lena's shell, she had to be amazing. 

"Okay," Kara smiled. "Sam."

\--

After the brief meeting at Catco, Sam was happy to relax with a glass of wine while Ruby safely slept. But then, the bulb in the living room lamp popped, and she got a dangerous idea in the garage. But the crowbar stayed unbent, and she returned to her belief that no, nothing was exceptional or superpowered about her.

\--

In the recently rebuilt pillow fort, Lena and Kara were curled up together, watching The Wizard Of Oz.

"I love her hair," Lena whispered as young Judy Garland sang "Somewhere Over The Rainbow".

"Yours would do that if we tried," Kara murmured back.

"It's not nearly thick enough," Lena chuckled.

"Your hair can do that, I promise."

Lena snuggled in closer in response.

"She's so cute," Kara said after the song ended.

"You're cuter," was Lena's immediate answer.

"Journalistic bias from the owner of Catco, how scandalous!" Kara gasped.

Lena reached over, hit pause on the remote, then pinned Kara down to the pillows and kissed the idea right out of her silly Super's head.

\--

J'onn was sitting alone in a booth at Al's, drinking and reflecting on the day as he tended to do. But as he put his glass down, he heard a voice call.

"J'onn?" the woman called.

He looked behind him, but couldn't see anything. So he looked down at the table, at his hand, and made to pick up his glass again.

A slender gloved hand stopped him. "J'onn."

He looked up, into his love's eyes. She wasn't cloaking her Martian appearance. "M'gann?"

"You must come to Mars. Now."

And just like that, she was gone again.

He leaned back, stunned. -I'm coming,- was his only thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My process, for those who have asked about it:
> 
> \- I watch the episode in question  
\- I outline how I want the episode to go  
\- I watch the episode again, and the outline fleshes out. Sometimes I'll start rewriting dialogue  
\- I decide what I'm leaving alone  
\- I pull up the transcript of the episode dialogue on ForeverDreaming  
\- I copy and paste chunks of dialogue (it doesn't retain formatting)  
\- I start filling in the episode. Sometimes the outlines remain true, sometimes things get dropped as I go, some things get added.
> 
> When it's done, I:
> 
> \- Read it again all the way through, scanning for slipped continuity or other mistakes  
\- I read it aloud to make sure it flows (my cat enjoys this part of the process)  
\- I watch the episode one more time while I read along, making sure it matches where I want it to  
\- I post it for you, reformatting it for A03 style.
> 
> Yes, it is time-consuming. But I get what I want, and you get something nice to read. It's why this can take awhile. Especially when I have to sit through the canon of Obnoxious Kara and James's dick-measuring contest against Lena. I take breaks, lots of them, for sure.
> 
> I probably spend about ten to twelve hours per episode. If that gives you an idea. Some of them are easier than others.


	18. far from the tree

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Over a hundred bookmarks? A HUNDRED? Wow, y'all can puff an old lady's head up something fierce. Or maybe you're just #boredinthehouse and caught up on all the TikToks you follow (not that I am in the same boat or anything). Either way, thanks!
> 
> I apologize for the excessive break. Things have happened, we've got a global pandemic for months now, and I've been dipping in and out of dark places. I've had family issues, medical issues (though I'm still COVID-19 free as of this writing!), and I moved in June, so shdgsgaffa. All my writing files have been lying fallow, if it's any comfort. All that I've been doing is working on my Animal Crossing island and trying not to break down. Yeehaw. Anyway, here we go.
> 
> Kara goes off and does the Martian thing with J'onn, so we won't really be hearing from her this episode. It's all good.
> 
> TW: racial slur that is taken directly from the existing script. Maggie's father uses it.

"Well, the loft looks great," Alex said as she inspected the final results. 

Kara, Lena, and Eliza had been working all afternoon on the decorations and preparation for Alex and Maggie's bridal shower, and Eliza had definitely had too much fun while doing so, trying her hardest not to drop hints every three minutes that if both her girls were settled this way, it would be a life goal.

Kara had deflected easily and Lena had just laughed, trying to hide the embarrassed blush that crept up every time. The fact that Eliza seemed to think her surname and family were no big deal and easily surmounted both warmed and terrified Lena, and after a number of frantic hand squeezes behind Eliza's back, Kara had taken her adoptive mother out to bring back coffee, and when they returned the hints stopped, although the smiles and hand-patting didn't.

"I know true love when I see it," Eliza had argued once they were down the street. "You and Lena have something pure and rare, Kara."

"I know that," Kara replied quickly, "but Lena has so much baggage, she doesn't believe that I can carry it for her. And a cargo plane full of trauma, too. All I can do is go along for the ride, at her pace, with her level of comfort."

Eliza sighed. "I'll back off, sweetie. I just wish things were different enough that you could talk about settling down."

"I've already settled down," Kara said firmly. "I can't see myself with anyone else, ever. But she's got to not only believe that, but want the same thing for herself. And I don't think she has the capacity to believe that lasting happiness exists for her. Not yet. I don't know when she'll ever get there."

Eliza stopped walking and hugged Kara tightly. "You just have to love her fiercely until she does."

Kara returned the hug. "Not a problem. Not a problem at all."

When they'd returned, Eliza had handed Lena her coffee with an apologetic smile, and the rest of the afternoon had gone swimmingly.

"Now if we could just burn this, then it would be perfect." Alex indicated the board that held her childhood photos with a handmade "Guess The Age Of The Bride" sign on it.

"No, come on, it's adorable," Lena laughed softly. She'd grown to love Eliza in only a short time. She knew it was probably because Eliza had influenced Kara so heavily as a young teen that she could have easily been her biological mother. They both had the same love-the-world tendency, Lena thought, and that was what defined them.

"I don't know why I thought throwing a lesbian wedding shower would curb Mom's cheesy antics," Alex groused.

"Nope, gay, straight, whatever, Eliza will not be stopped, until she digs up every bridal shower game since the beginning of time," Kara chuckled. "You know what? You're gonna love bridal bingo."

"Kill me now, please," Alex groaned, looking over at Lena who grimaced in solidarity.

A knock at the door startled the trio.

"Oh! Eliza's early." Kara hurried to the door. "Hi!"

She stopped, because it wasn't Eliza at the door. "Oh, J'onn. Come on in," she said, ushering him in. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. Everything's great," he said unconvincingly as he walked in.

"I just...I just needed to talk to you both. I have to go away for a few days. I'm gonna need you both to manage the DEO until I get back."

"Where are you going?" Lena asked softly.

He looked over at her, acknowledging that he didn't mind her knowing. "Mars."

"Mars?" Alex replied in disbelief.

"M'gann sent me a message. She needs my help."

"Help with what?" Kara asked.

J'onn sighed, sitting down on the arm of one of Kara's chairs. "Message was short, urgent. I tried to make contact, but I couldn't reach her. But I can sense that she's in danger."

"No, J'onn, you're the last Green Martian," Kara argued. "The Whites have been trying to kill your kind for centuries. Going back would be a suicide mission!"

"Look, M'gann came to our aid when we were in need. I must go for M'gann," J'onn replied firmly.

"If you are going to Mars, then Kara has to go with you," Lena replied. She hated to say it, but this man was a surrogate father to the love of her life and her sister, and he would need backup in case it was a trap.

"Yeah," Kara chimed in. A tiny thrill ran through her. -Mon-El wouldn't have said that. He would have argued for me to stay here. But Lena accepts me for who I am.- 

J'onn frowned. "I won't have you endanger your life just to fight my battles."

"Your battles -are- my battles, J'onn," Kara replied, tone intense.

"I can't take you away from Alex's shower!" J'onn didn't want his superpowered surrogate daughter to be part of what he knew could be a deadly conflict, so he grabbed for the straw he thought would work.

"Are you kidding? If I thought that I could survive Mars, then I'd be right there fighting by your side," Alex argued. 

"J'onn, if Krypton still existed and I had to go back to where my parents were buried, under rubble, I know you wouldn't let me do it alone," Kara pled.

Lena rose and took Kara's hand, lacing their fingers together. -I wouldn't let you do it alone either, darling.-

"You're sure you're okay with managing the shower now, Lena?" J'onn asked, clearly grabbing at anything he could think of.

Lena scoffed. "I've been to rougher coffee klatches." She kissed Kara's cheek. "Safe travels, darling."

Kara beamed in response.

\--

"Eliza, the lasagna is incredible," Maggie said. "Alex and I order in so much, I forgot what real food tastes like."

"Thank you," Eliza replied. "It -is- the girls' favourite. I'm just disappointed Kara couldn't be here. I know whatever she is doing with J'onn is important, but... I just, I -do- worry about her."

"I know how much she appreciates that," Lena said. "She really, really does. And she's sad to be missing the extra time with you."

Eliza smiled at her for a moment, nodding before changing tacks. "Well, this weekend is about happy matters of the heart for those of us who are still Earth-side. And I did want to make a bridal board for you too, Maggie, but, Alex said you have no childhood pictures."

"No," Maggie replied succinctly.

"If you don't mind my asking...how long has it been since you've talked to your parents?" Eliza asked gently.

"Um, since I was fourteen," Maggie responded after a moment, as if she knew the question had been coming.

"You know what, Mom? Let's just talk about something else," Alex said, trying to cut off what she was sure was an upsetting line of discussion.

"No, no, Alex, it's okay." Maggie sighed softly. "Um...I told a girl at school that I liked her and my parents found out. I came home that day, it was winter, and my dad was there with a suitcase...and he told me to get into the car. And we drove in silence. And I just stared out the window looking at the icicles on the trees, and I was terrified to say anything, but finally I said, um yeah...I said, 'Papi, what did I do?' And then he just looked at me with such contempt...and said, um... 'You shamed me.'"

Maggie looked over at Alex before continuing. "And then he pulled up to my aunt's house, and left me with my suitcase. That was the last thing that my father said to me."

The table sat in stunned silence for a long moment.  
Lena suddenly realized how much she and Maggie actually had in common. -Family and shame. Family and shame...-

"The only thing shameful about that story is how your father treated you, Maggie."

"Yeah," Maggie whispered as Alex cuddled up to her comfortingly. "Yeah."

Lena just nodded, her sad smile indicating to Maggie that she understood some of the trauma all too well.

\--

"You never told me the whole story about your dad and the car," Alex said as she finished preparing for bed.

"What's the point?" Maggie asked from the end of the bed where she was sitting.

"I wanna share everything with you, Maggie. I mean, the good and the bad. I knew that he was hard on you..."

"But before that day, he was the best father," Maggie interrupted. "I know he sounds like a monster, but...you just don't know where he came from."

"Well, it sounds like you still really love him," Alex said gently.

"I don't know," Maggie deflected instantly. "I am just saying that he didn't have it easy."

"Well, have you ever thought about calling him?" Alex stepped up to the bed.

"Of course I have."

"And?" Alex sat down next to her fiancée.

Maggie scoffed. "My aunt told me that my mother removed every picture of me from the photo albums. They erased me, I don't need that." 

"Look, what your family did to you was incredibly hurtful, but sometimes parents can do really stupid things when they are up against something that they don't understand. What if you invited them to the shower?" 

"Are you kidding?" Maggie's expression morphed into disbelief and she stood up.

"Well, it's the perfect excuse to reach out."

"Yeah, right," Maggie replied sardonically as she pulled back the covers. "You kicked me out because I'm gay, but, 'Hey, come to my gay shower!'"

"It was a long time ago," Alex replied as she crawled onto her side of the bed. "Look, the world has changed. Maybe they have too."

"I don't think so," Maggie huffed as she did the same. "Babe, look, I love you. Just please drop it."

"Okay." Alex did as asked, but it remained the last thing on her mind as she fell asleep.

\--

Maggie awoke in the middle of the night. She hadn't slept well at all. And before she could second-guess herself, she crept out of bed and picked up her phone, tapping a contact she still kept transferring from phone to phone even though she hadn't dialed it in years. -It's an early hour in Gotham, but he'll be awake.-

Two rings later, the line was picked up, and she spoke softly to avoid waking Alex.

"_Hola, papi. Soy yo Margarita, ¿como esta?_ I'm living in National City now. Yeah, I'm a cop. I like it, it's good."

She steeled herself. "So, um, anyway, I am calling because...I'm getting married."

She was quick to reply to the assumption posed to her. "No, it's, um, it's not a...her name is Alex. Anyway, we're having a party. A wedding shower, on Sunday, and, um... You probably can't make it, but I thought maybe I would invite you?"

The response was not exactly what she expected. "See, I'd like it if you came, _si puede._" She decided to shut it down before too many questions were posed. "Anyway, I hope you and Mom are good. _Cuidarse._"

She hung up and looked over to find Alex awake and looking at her with such compassion that she wanted to burst into tears right then. "Why did I do that?"

Alex only looked at her, willing her to feel the love and understanding.

\--

"What's in the 11am slot?" Jess asked through the earpiece.

Dayara touched her right ear as she walked with purpose down one of L Corp's long, long halls. "Investors from India. Some oil company."

Jess scoffed. "She'll eat them for lunch."

"No, she will not eat lunch at all," Dayara replied. "I need you to order her regular from Stein Sisters' Bagels and have it delivered at 12:05."

"In case they run over time, you have a reason to get in there and end the meeting," came the pleased response. "Nice one. Do I order for Kara as well?"

"No, she went out of town for a few days. Some story she is following."

When Dayara entered her boss's office, she immediately pulled out and turned on a small, black object.

A small popping noise a moment later alerted her, and she pinpointed the source of it a moment later. A tiny electronic bug, now thoroughly deactivated. She tossed it on the desk and put the jammer back in her purse, pulling out a slightly larger, silver device and pressing the button on it.

A tiny frizzing noise greeted her from over by Lena's water pitcher. Dayara sighed and took a small magnifying lens out, squinting through it til she located the even smaller bug. She whipped long-handed tweezers out of her purse, plucking the tiny thing from its home behind one of the art pieces and dropping it on a white post-it.

It took three more passes with jammers of different frequencies before all the enemy technology was dealt with. There were four audio bugs, two keystroke bugs, and one very cleverly designed and hidden bug designed to listen to Lena's safe combination.

Dayara touched her ear. "We are clear. May I have security tech in here?"

"That took a while. Everything okay?"

"Got seven this time. Time to fire the cleaners again?"

Jess sighed. "I wish we knew what benefits package Lillian keeps offering all these thugs."

Dayara sighed as well. "Then we could double it."

If there was one thing that Dayara did like about life on Earth, it was that her job was important and she enjoyed doing it. And she liked Lena. They understood one another as friends, outsiders, and rebels. Sure, Dayara had to deal with putting her life on the line on a daily basis. But Lena was just as likely to grab her petite assistant and stuff her into a corner to keep her out of danger as anything else.

"I can't lose you," Lena had argued one day. "You're my friend and I can't lose you."

"Only one of us is wearing Kevlar!" Dayara had shouted back. "You may not put yourself in the line of fire again! You will -understand- me, Lena Luthor!"

Lena had stopped cold at the rage she saw in her friend's eyes.

"You are the reason I am still alive, my friend," Dayara had continued in a softer but no less intense tone. "You saved my life during the Daxam invasion. Now, you pay me, at great expense, to save yours. A task I do not take lightly. I can protect my dear friend, and I will."

"I'm sorry, Dayara." Lena's reply had been soft and sincere.

"You pay me to save your life," Dayara made sure to reiterate. "I have many firearms with which to do so. As well as Kevlar." She rapped her knuckles where her sternum should be. "Please, next time, step behind me?"

Lena had nodded.

It only lasted for a few incidents, and then Dayara had to remind Lena again, but they were working it out more and more with every event.

"It isn't that I don't trust you," Lena pleaded. "It isn't that I don't think you can do your job, because I know you can."

"You have always protected your friends," Dayara replied. "That is your nature. And in your heart, I am more than your staff."

Lena's eyes welled up. "Yes, Dayara. Yes, you are."

They would hang out together, sometimes, doing a movie night or dinner together when Kara was otherwise occupied. And once in awhile, Dayara could admit, she felt jealous of the superhero, getting to date and be intimate with the beautiful force of nature that was Lena. But she couldn't actually see herself dating or being with anyone, male or female. She went to dinners and events with Winn, but they'd settled into a comfortable friendship-only routine after about a month.

No, Dayara didn't date, nor did she want to. It wasn't a thing that she needed or even wanted to do. But she could admit that her employer was not only beautiful, but smart and talented and, if you got Kara started, an amazing kisser. Which Dayara didn't doubt for one second.

Security came bustling in, taking away the bugs to analyze. Then Dayara took the water pitcher to the break room, where she pulled an expensive brand of bottled water out of the fridge and conducted a test on it. It had been sealed at the plant, but Lena had untold numbers of enemies she didn't deserve. When the test proved the water was clear of any poisons or heavy metals, Dayara filled the pitcher and brought both it and the bottle back to Lena's office. The bottle would be stowed in the tiny fridge where, inevitably, Dayara would find some portion of the previous day's lunch lurking like a snappy baby _kalava_.

Dayara turned on the small oil diffuser that held a blend of lavender and Roman chamomile; a stress-busting technique that seemed to work on Lena, at least until the third or fourth phone call of the day. It would run for two hours, then turn itself off. She turned on all the accent lights, highlighting the artwork, and hit the button to retract the ceiling-to-floor blinds, revealing the outside world.

And with that, the office was ready for its occupant: the wealthiest, busiest, strongest woman in the world.

Dayara checked her weapons next, making sure all were locked, loaded, and with safeties on. She sat down on the couch where visitors would recline, waiting for Lena. Part of her job included occupying the office until Lena arrived, to avoid anyone who might be carrying any hostility slipping in and doing something nefarious. The Thanagarian used this time to check her personal email (often filled with memes from Winn and Kara) and read the news.

As usual, she didn't need to wait longer than about ten minutes before Lena came bustling in with a smile and wave, ready to take on her day. Dayara smiled back and exited, taking her place at her desk located between Jess's station and the door to Lena's office.

As she opened her laptop and logged into her work email, she smiled. Yes, she enjoyed her new life quite a bit. It certainly was miles above having to do the Queen of Daxam's dull bidding.

\--

As Maggie walked up to the bus her father said he'd be on, she saw him standing there. The years had not been kind to him, but she'd know him anywhere.

He was looking in the opposite direction, trying to see if she was there, before turning and seeing her.  
"Margarita," he said, slightly surprised.

"Dad," she replied, almost breathless. It was happening, it was real.

The hug was awkward as hell, but Maggie pressed on. "I wish you would have called and told me you were coming. I would have picked you up at the airport." 

"The bus was fine."

"Is Mom...?" Maggie didn't dare hope as she looked behind him to the bus.

"No, your mother isn't coming. She doesn't like to fly..." 

"Oh, you don't have to explain." That came out more dismissively than she'd meant it to, and she scrambled to recover. "...Are you hungry? We could grab a bite."

"The party of yours is soon, no?" The distance and lack of surety was clear in his eyes.

"In a couple of hours, but we have time," she replied quickly.

"I can wait. I should probably check in at the hotel." He clearly wasn't sure how to act around her, and she wasn't sure how she wanted him to act.

"Okay." She tried not to show disappointment.

"I think it's this way." He motioned to the way he'd expected she'd come.

They set out together, walking for a moment before he spoke again. "So, um, you're a homicide detective?"

"Yeah. Among other things."

"That cold case you cracked sounded very interesting. The Marshall murder."

"You know about that?"

"Well, I'm an old man, but I know how to Google. I follow all your cases."

He stopped, turning to her. "Tell me something. For eighteen years they didn't have a single lead. How did you solve that?"

She nodded. "I went back to the scene of the crime, studied the ordinary details everyone dismissed. Like you taught me. You used to say, 'The key to most mysteries is in the mundane.'" 

"You remember that." He sounded surprised and pleased.

"I remember everything you taught me."

He nodded slightly, unsure of how to respond. She regarded him steadily, and after a moment, they continued walking.

\--

The bridal shower was in full swing, and Lena's skills as a hostess and planner were cheerfully being tested by each and every guest including Eliza. She'd already had to send out for more supplies or forgotten things twice, but Dayara was more than happy to slip away from the boisterous celebration. It wasn't that she didn't like the party, it was just that all the carrying-on reminded her of her time as a Daxamite servant, and she wasn't ready to face that part of her past yet.

"Everybody!" Eliza projected, holding out her arms expansively. "Everybody, it is...trivia time. And Maggie, you are in the hot seat."

"Thank God," Alex replied quickly as Eliza took a laughing Maggie's hands and tugged her over to the den area. "Have fun!"

"Don't get too comfortable, Danvers. You're up next," James warned her teasingly as he handed her another beer.

"Doctor D, I got this," Winn announced, taking the cards from Eliza and squinting at them. "All right. Here we go. What is Alex's favourite...favourite color?"

"Blue," Maggie answered promptly, earning a smile from her fiancée.

"What is Alex's favorite animal?"

"Uh, dog," Maggie said sarcastically, as if the whole room should know that. 

"What is Alex's favorite ice cream?"

"Rocky road. Come on, man," Maggie sassed.

-Ah, that's why Kara always has some in her freezer,- Lena thought. And then the door opened behind her, so she turned around.

The Hispanic man in the doorway could only be one person, the last-minute addition to the guest list who no one was sure would actually come.

"Oh, uh. Mr. Rodas. Welcome," Lena said, her recovery flawless.

"Hi." He proffered the bottle in his hands. "I'm sorry, I didn't know what to bring."

"Oh, no, no. This is perfect," Lena assured him.

"Maggie loves merlot," Alex chimed in, peeking at the bottle. "Can I offer you a drink?"

"Sure. Why not?"

"Great," Alex replied, popping the cap off a beer bottle and handing it to him.

"Thank you."

"Yeah, cheers," she replied, more breathlessly than she'd meant to. "Come in."

Lena smiled and faded back a few steps, monitoring the conversation but part of the scenery once more. -I wish you were here, Kara.-

"Now, you're talking," Maggie drawled as she smiled at Winn, who had asked her a trivia question that Lena didn't catch.

Rodas walked over to the guess-the-age board. "Is this you here?"

Maggie noticed her father talking to her fiancée and got up from her seat, frowning.

"Oh..." Alex chuckled nervously. "Yes, I don't know why I thought overalls were cute in middle school."

"So, you are, um..." Rodas looked at her.

"The woman I am going to marry," Maggie cut in, hugging her father to cut off anything awkward he might have wanted to say. "Um, Papa, meet Agent Alex Danvers."

"Federal agent?" Rodas asked.

"Yes, sir," Alex answered. 

Rodas was unsure how to respond, so he turned to the board. "_Pero, Margarita,_ there's no picture of you up here."

"No." Maggie let that stand, reminding him whose fault that was.

"Here," he whispered, touching her arm before pulling out his wallet and taking out a faded, creased school photo. He kissed it quickly, then tucked it into one of the paper hearts holding up the photos. 

Maggie's smile was small and sad as she looked at Alex, but it was genuine. "Thank you, Papa."

"Yeah," he exhaled.

"Danvers, you're up," James said. 

"Oh," was Alex's soft response.

Eliza caught the awkwardness of the situation with her daughter, her fiancée, and fiancée's father immediately, standing up. "Okay, why don't we just open the mountain of presents instead," she said, taking both women's hands and pulling them forward.

"Okay," Alex replied, still dazed from what just happened with Maggie and her father.

"Hi, I am Eliza," she bubbled at Rodas, trusting that even if it was too much, she could smooth the situation over one way or another. 

"Sorry, mom," Alex tossed over her shoulder to Rodas as explanation.

"I'm the mom," Eliza cheerfully confirmed as she got both women to sit down near the presents. "Why don't we start with this one for Maggie?"

"Okay, thank you," Maggie smiled as she took the box. "Oh, I think I know who this is from," she said as she pulled out the card from the green envelope, looking at Alex with a smile.

Alex smiled back happily. She'd gotten Maggie a new gun, a Ruger pistol with complicated DEO proprietary biometrics and a sweet kickback.

Maggie decided to conduct one last litmus test before she tore open the gift. "Alex, before I open this, I want you to know that you are the greatest gift I could receive."

"I love you," Alex replied happily. And as they kissed, Maggie received the reaction from her father she expected, feared, and dreaded: his making a scene as he exited, slamming the door.

"Maggie," Alex entreated, even though she knew it was no good.

Maggie caught up to her father on the street. "You're just gonna walk out? After all this time, that's it?" she yelled.

"I can't do this," was his gruff response.

"Can't do what? Tell me, please. What exactly have I done that is so offensive to you?" She wanted to hear it, wanted to hear him lay his cruelty out.

"You spit in my face," he growled.

"I spit in your face? For loving somebody. I can't, I don't understand. I don't get it," Maggie pressed.

"I came to this country nine years old. At eleven, I was working in a factory."

"Yes, I know."

"Do you?"

"Yeah." 

"Do you know I was the only Mexicano working alongside a bunch of white boys? Do you know that they would wait for me at night by the road, and laugh and call me wetback, and kick me till my ribs were broken?"

"Dad, what does this have to do..."

"With you being a lesbian? I worked to win their respect. Those same boys, when they grew up, elected me their sheriff. I endured for my children. So that you would never have to face that kind of hatred. So that you would belong!" He yelled.

"I am accepted for who I am. The world is different now."

Rodas laughed sarcastically, almost a cackle. "They're building a wall to keep us out because in their minds, we are nothing but rapists and murderers. The only thing they hate more than a Mexicano is a homosexual. The world is not different, my dear." He softened his voice just enough that people would stop staring. "Look. You can live any way you please. But don't ask me to witness it."

And with that, he walked away.

\--

"Well, that could have gone better," Eliza sighed as she took down the last of the decorations.

"Maggie needed to do it, for her own sake," Lena replied, continuing to sweep. "To go into this without...without her past weighing her down."

"Like you wish you could do?" Eliza's response was soft, but direct.

"I can admit to jealousy over that," Lena replied carefully.

Dayara looked up from sorting the cards, first at Lena, and then Eliza.

"I wish I could leave my past behind, yes," Lena continued after a moment. "But I never can. It influences every second of every moment of my life. Even if I bring someone in from a place where they've never heard of my family, it only takes a day or two before it infects every interaction they have with me."

"Perhaps you should not hire any old alien off a ship to be your bodyguard, then," Dayara joked gently. "It definitely affects how your security acts to keep you breathing."

Lena scoffed. "You know what I mean, Dayara."

"I suppose that I do." She smiled and returned to the cards.

\--

"I'm so proud of you, babe," Alex told Maggie over dinner. "Even if it was hard."

"This is why I didn't want to invite him in the first place," Maggie sighed. "Him, them, whatever."

"I'm so sorry that I pushed you," Alex replied, frowning in concern.

"Babe, if you don't know by now that I will never truly be pushed, I don't know what will convince you," Maggie said, tone light and joking. "Yes, you wanted me to, but I was the one who picked up the phone and dialed."

"I wish your father was proud of you," Alex sighed.

"He is," Maggie replied. "He is proud of my work. In his own way. Just not my personal life."

"That's not truly proud, though," Alex said. "Proud would be accepting of you. All of you. Every bit, not just your work. Which is amazing, by the way."

Maggie nodded. "True. I have to let him go. This was his last chance to love me. His daughter. And he blew it."

Alex leaned over and took Maggie's hands in hers. "And that's his loss."

Maggie nodded. Her father had told her that he had booked his flight for the next morning, and she knew what she had to do. He had refused to let her back into his life, so she had to let him go.

\--

"I do not think I understand," Dayara said as she carried the box inside Kara's apartment. "What do you need all of this for?"

Lena grinned as she took the box. "Magic. You'll see. Will you help me with that over there?" She nodded at the tall but thin cardboard box that had taken both of them to lug inside.

"Of course. What are we putting together?"

"A bed frame."

"But Kara has a bed."

"This one is better. Trust me."

Dayara shrugged. "You are the boss, boss."

Lena laughed. "Figure out what you want for dinner while we unpack this, though."

"And what -you- want as well," was Dayara's immediate response.

Lena snorted. "I swear. You all -plot- against me."

"If you persist in being an Earth stereotype, we will respond appropriately," Dayara replied wryly.

Lena rolled her eyes. "Plotting. Anyway, let's get to it."

\--

"What are you doing here?" Rodas asked as his path to the bus suddenly held his daughter.

Maggie handed him the faded, wrinkled wallet-size photo of her as a child. "Came to give you that back. That little girl, so desperate to win her father's love. You left her on the side of the road. And all these years, I've been that little girl."

Rodas's face remained stony as she continued.

"Yearning for my Papa to come back for me. Praying that one day he would see me and love me for who I am," Maggie choked up for a moment before finishing the speech she'd been rehearsing in her head since the night before.

"Thank you for coming to the shower. You gave me an amazing gift. You showed me that I am not that scared, little girl in that picture anymore. I'm an adult woman, and I am happy in my own skin. And I am so fortunate that I am surrounded by people who value and cherish me. I finally understand I don't need you to see me or to get me or to even like me. I don't need anything from you. I'm already good."

They faced each other for a long moment before Maggie spoke again. "Goodbye, Papa."

As she left her father there, Detective Margaret Sawyer left her past behind for good.

\--

"You can't look yet," Lena teased as she opened the door to Kara's apartment.

"You know I have x-ray vision," Kara bantered as she let Lena guide her through the doorway, hands over her eyes.

"And you know you love surprises, so just wait," Lena laughed, closing the door and putting both hands on Kara's waist to steer her.

"My super senses tell me we're heading for bed," Kara joked. She did have her eyes closed under her hands, because Lena--HER Lena--had a surprise just for her.

Lena stopped her in front of the bedroom area. "You can look."

Kara dropped her hands, opened her eyes, and -squealed.-

Her bed had been replaced with a canopy four-poster, the gauzy white curtains cascading down effortlessly. Strings and strings of twinkling fairy lights crisscrossed the top of the canopy and spiraled down the posts.

"Lena..." Kara was overcome, and held out her hands, arms bent at the elbows.

Lena stepped close behind Kara, lacing their fingers then wrapping her arms around her love. "Welcome home, darling. I figured this was comfier and quicker than setting up the blanket fort every time we want it. What do you think?"

"It's perfect," Kara whispered, tears welling up. "You're perfect, why are you perfect, Lena?"

"Shsh." Lena kissed her cheek. "You like it, then?"

"I want to see what you look like underneath those little stars." Kara turned around, wrapping her arms around Lena's neck and kissing her with clear intent.

Lena sighed happily into Kara's mouth, and as warm hands slid down to tug at the hem of her blouse, she smiled against Kara's lips. -Yes, home is with you, darling.-

\--

"You're all the family I need," Maggie said softly as she sat on the couch with Alex.

"I'm happy for you. And I am glad that you're getting closure. It's good for you," Alex replied. "And who knows? It might make you feel differently about things."

"Do you mean kids?" Maggie asked. She didn't like where this was going. Again.

"Yeah," Alex admitted.

"Sweetie, my not wanting kids has nothing to do with my parents or my childhood. My feelings for you are deeper than anything I've ever known. I can picture our life together. And it's full and rich and...amazing. But there aren't kids in that picture. You're all that I need, Alex. I guess you gotta let me know if you feel the same way."

"I do" Alex replied quickly, even as she felt a tiny piece of her soul curl up and drop off. "Of course I do."


End file.
